Little Sisters of the Poor Philadelphia
Call Us (215) 729-5153
Email Us phadminsecretary@littlesistersofthepoor.org
Follow Us
(215) 729-5153 phadminsecretary@littlesistersofthepoor.org
  • Main Page
  • Our Home
    • Our Mission Statement
    • Philosophy
    • Admissions
    • Our Begging Tradition
    • Building to Serve in Love Campaign
    • Meet Our Family
    • History
    • Don’s Story
    • Jim’s Story
    • Catherine’s Story
    • Kathy’s Story
    • Slim’s Story
    • Employment
    • Volunteer
    • Youth
  • News and Events
  • Blog
  • Calendar
  • Association Jeanne Jugan
  • Vocations
  • Our U.S. Site
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
23 Feb 2022

Black Heritage Month 2022

0
  • February 23, 2022
  • admin
  • 279 Views
  • 0 Likes
  • Blog
Black Heritage Month 2022

February is Black Heritage Month. For this occasion, Joe Henwood, who authored a biography of Marian Anderson, came to Holy Family Home to give a presentation on “The Lady from Philadelphia.”

Our Residents were thrilled because they had vivid memories of Marian Anderson. Interestingly, none of our black employees interviewed ever heard of her. We watched a video and listened attentively as “Joe” told the story of a fellow-Philadelphian.

Marian Anderson was born in 1897 in South Philadelphia in a family that was poor in material means but rich in their Christian faith and Afro-American cultural values. Her neighbors were the first to discover Marian’s contralto voice. She joined the junior church choir at the age of six. At the age of 10, Marian was singing with the People’s Chorus of Philadelphia. Her family could not pay for any music lessons or high school. The pastor of her Baptist church, along with other leaders of the black community, raised the money she needed to get singing lessons and to attend South Philadelphia High. After high school, Anderson applied to the all-white Philadelphia Music Academy but was turned away because she was “colored.” Undaunted, Marian pursued studies privately in her native city through the continued support of the Philadelphia black community.

She eventually toured Europe, where she did not encounter the prejudices she had experienced in America. After being acclaimed abroad, Marian sang at the inaugurations of President Eisenhower and John Kennedy and at Martin Luther King’s famous “I had a Dream” speech.

Of course, our Residents resonated with Mr. Henwood’s presentation and this provided the opportunity to share their memories with our employees. Marian Anderson’s success story is rightfully seen as part of Black Heritage.

Valentine’s Day 2022
Praying for Ukraine
Related Posts
  • March 23, 2023 0
    Celebrating St. Joseph
  • March 18, 2023 0
    Irish Aires
  • March 16, 2023 0
    Encounter with Christ in the City

Leave a Reply Cancel Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Copyright © 2023, LSP Philadelphia. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy