WHEREAS, The Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity will celebrate its centennial anniversary in Philadelphia from June 26, 2004 through June 30, 2004; and
WHEREAS, It is anticipated that more than twenty five hundred persons will attend this Centennial Convention; and
WHEREAS, The Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity is the oldest African American Fraternity in the United States having been founded in Philadelphia in May, 1904; and
WHEREAS, Sigma Pi Phi, a Fraternity of college graduates, was born at the dawn of the twentieth century because intellectual and social interaction for men of color in their professional endeavors was closed or limited by virtue of race; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Henry McKee Minton, a pharmacist and later a physician recognized and foresaw that there was a need for African American men of distinction to interact with one another, learn from each other’s experiences and thereby better serve their individual communities; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Minton was a pharmacist at Philadelphia’s first black hospital, Douglas Hospital and later after receiving his medical degree was a co-founder of Mercy Hospital the second black hospital in Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, These institutions were beacons of hope that attracted black professionals to Philadelphia for generations; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Minton convened the first Boulé meeting of Sigma Pi Phi together with Algernon B. Jackson (1878-1942), Chief Surgeon at Mercy Hospital; Eugene T. Hinson (1873-1960), a graduate of the Medical School of the University of Pennsylvania who joined the staff of Douglas Hospital; Richard J. Warrick (1880- 1957), a dentist and also a founder of Mercy Hospital; Eugene C. Howard (1846-1912), the first Negro to graduate from Harvard Medical School who practiced medicine in Philadelphia and Robert J. Abele (1875-1929), a graduate of Hahnemann Medical College who was a founder of Mercy Hospital - all men that lived in a segregated world who provided dedicated healthcare to the African American Community in Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Sigma Pi Phi has been a source of strength, intellectual activism and social commitment for Philadelphians of distinction in a variety of professions including by way of example, Raymond Pace Alexander, city councilman, judge and civic leader; Floyd W. Alston, educator, civic leader and banker; Robert W. Bogle, newspaper publisher; Charles R. Bridges, physician; Maurice C. Clifford, physician and healthcare administrator; Edward S. Cooper, physician; Richard G. Gilmore, business leader and city finance director; W. Wilson Goode, Sr., Mayor; A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr, judge, educator and scholar; Walter T. Lomax, physician, healthcare provider and business leader; Robert L. Poindexter, educator; Theodore O. Spaulding, appellate court judge; John F. Speller, physician; Frederick D. Stubbs, physician; John P. Turner, physician; and James S. White, Managing Director and Officer, United States Military; and
WHEREAS, Sigma Pi Phi from its beginnings is now a Fraternity located in 112 cities and towns across America and has been a “home away from home” for such men as Martin L. King, Jr., minister and philosopher; W.E. DuBois, scholar; Benjamin E. Mays, educator; Ron Brown, statesmen; and Andrew Young, activist for peace; and
WHEREAS, Sigma Pi Phi has created a Foundation that among other things provides significant scholarships to African American youth throughout the United States and in the last year awarded multiple scholarships for educational endeavors to young people; now therefore
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Congratulates the Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity on its centennial anniversary; and be it further
RESOLVED FURTHER, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Commends the members of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity for their commitment to academic excellence, and the social needs of all people throughout the United States; and
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to the leadership of Sigma Pi Phi at its Public Meeting on Monday June 28, 2004.
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