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In recognition of Black History month, the Sixers along with the Philadelphia Tribune will present Community Service All-Star Service Awards. The honorees will be recognized for their superb commitment to the community at each home game during the month of February.

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February 28- Kenny Gamble
Gamble was born and raised in Philadelphia and has been credited as being a true pioneer in the development of soul/rhythm and blues music in America. He has written, produced, recorded and published more than 3,000 songs performed by various artists including: Teddy Pendergrass, The Intruders, The Jackson Five, The Ojays, The Delfonics, Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, Jerry Butler, Lou Rawls, Nancy Wilson, Phyllis Hyman and McFadden & Whitehead. His catalog includes more than 170 gold and platinum songs and albums. He Has also received two Grammy Awards for writing "Me & Mrs. Jones" and "If You Don't Know Me By Now."

Gamble along with his partner Leon A. Huff, are hailed as the creators of "The Sound of Philadelphia." They are also co-founders of the world renowned Philadelphia International Records, where Gamble serves as Chairman of the Board and CEO. Gamble has received a host of awards too numerous to mention for his musical genius and for his dedication and commitment to those Less fortunate.

In 1993, he founded Universal Community Homes, and in eight years, Universal has become one of the most successful community revitalization efforts in the history of the City of Philadelphia. Focusing primarily on South Philadelphia, Universal Companies under the leadership of Gamble is one of the largest providers of affordable housing in the city with more than 250 units developed and over 180 units under construction. In addition, Universal operates a workforce development center that provides job training to over 2,000 residents, a Business Support Center that serves more than 300 entrepreneurs, and Universal also manages the education for over 2,000 Philadelphia public school students.

Gamble is truly a great Philadelphia success story and for a man that is known worldwide for making hit records all over the world, he has said the effort to rebuild his old neighborhood is, "the biggest hit of his life."

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February 26- C. Dolores Tucker
One of this century’s most renowned visionaries and civil rights activists, Tucker is the former Secretary of State for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1971-1977). She became the first African American woman in the nation to serve in that position. During her tenure, she instituted the first Commission on the Status of Women in Pennsylvania, and was responsible for the Governor’s appointment of more women judges, and more women and African Americans to boards and commissions than ever before in the history of the Commonwealth.

Among her many accolades, Tucker is the convening founder and national chair of the National Congress of Black Women, Inc. (NCBW). She also led the effort to make Pennsylvania one of the first states to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. As Chief of Elections of Pennsylvania, she was a leader in instituting voter registration by mail and reducing the voting age from 21 to 18 years of age. She is also the founder and president of the Bethune-DuBois Institute, Inc., which she established in 1991, to promote the cultural development of African American youth through scholarships and educational programs. Tucker also launched, and serves as publisher of the publication, Vital Issues: The Journal of African American Speeches; an acknowledgement of its launching was inserted into the Congressional Record by then Congressman William H. Gray.

Recently selected as one of 25 of the World’s Most Intriguing People by People Magazine, Tucker was also selected as a People Magazine 1996 Yearbook Honoree, and was featured in the inaugural issue of George Magazine for her crusade against gangsta/porno rap. In addition, she has been acknowledged for her deep concern for children by former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton in her book It Takes A Village. Tucker was named by Ebony Magazine as one of its 100 Most Influential African Americans for 2003.

In addition, she is the founding president of the Philadelphia Martin Luther King, Jr. Association for Non-Violent Change, the first and only affiliate in the United States to be commissioned by Mrs. Coretta Scott King. Her civic and political activities include her participation in the memorable Selma-to-Montgomery March in 1965 with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She also was a delegate to the historic White House Conference on Civil Rights.
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February 23- Norman D. Griffiths
Griffiths has been a member of Wilmington, Del.’s City Council for more than a decade. He has also served as an attorney for Dupont’s legal department for 20 years. Since his days as a former Washington, D.C. police officer, Griffiths has remained committed to active personal participation in various inner city neighborhood projects. He has given his leadership and support of Wilmington’s largest community initiatives, including the “Street-Scape Project” and the waterfront district development program. Griffiths was also one of the leaders in spearheading creative outreach initiatives sponsored by the city and other community leaders that addressed the issues of vacant housing, blighted neighborhoods, and decreased residential living in downtown Wilmington.

As one of the members of City Council’s Public Safety Committee for the past eight years, Griffiths has partnered with Wilmington’s Police Department on the development of innovative crime prevention and quality of life initiatives. Griffiths is also in his third year as chair of City Council’s Finance Committee and has served on numerous boards including Christiana Health Care Corporation, Delaware Technical and Community College, Catholic Charities, Inc., and the Catholic Diocese Foundation. He has been recognized by with the YMCA Black Achiever Award for Business and Industry, the Legislative Award from Delaware, Maryland, and the District of Columbia’s Cable Telecommunication’s Association, as well as the prestigious Service Award from the state of Delaware’s Emergency Response Commission. Griffiths also is a member of the bar in the District of Columbia, State of New Jersey, and State of Delaware (associate).
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February 14- Rev. Dr. Thomas J. Ritter
Rev. Ritter is a World War II veteran. Upon his discharge, he moved from York, Pennsylvania to Philadelphia where he completed his undergraduate studies at Temple University and Eastern Baptist College (BS Human Relations, 1959). After serving as associate minister at Enon Baptist Church, Ritter moved to become pastor of Second Macedonia Baptist Church. At Macedonia, he set up one of the premiere Vacation Bible Schools in Philadelphia.

Recognized as a Co-Founder with the late Rev. Dr. Leon H. Sullivan of the Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc. (OIC) in 1964, Ritter served as its first Executive Director assisting over 75 urban communities in the United States and throughout the world. Rev. Ritter was instrumental in the development of many of Philadelphia’s new major business centers including Strawberry Square Shopping Center and Progress Human Services Plaza in North Philadelphia and Progress Haddington Plaza in West Philadelphia, which employ thousands of city residents.

Rev. Ritter sits on the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Martin Luther King Association for Nonviolence, Inc. and chairs Philadelphia’s Human Relations Commission. As an outgrowth of the civic concern from many of his Second Macedonia members, Ritter helped establish a community-based volunteer self-help organization called “Giving-of-Self-Partnership” (GOSP). It addresses the deterioration particularly in the West Oak Lane and Olney neighborhoods due to crime, drug abuse, high unemployment, teen pregnancy, and family breakdown.

Rev. Ritter has completed additional studies at the University of Utah and has three Doctoral degrees from Morris College (Divinity, 1968), Eastern Baptist College (Divinity 1969), and Temple University (Human Letters). Among his other distinctions include the Distinguished Citizen’s Award from the U.S. Civil Service Commission, NAACP Community Service Award, Drum Major for Social Justice Award, City of Philadelphia Citation Award, and the Minority Contractor Utilization Award from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

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February 12- Samuel L. Evans
Having just celebrated his 100th birthday in November 2002, Evans is without question one of Philadelphia and America’s greatest living legends. Known by many as “The Icon and Godfather in National and International Affairs,” Evans was appointed in 1940 by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the Coordinator of the U.S. Division of Physical Fitness to aid in the war efforts against Adolph Hitler. He was later selected along with 17 of the nation’s leading world authorities in Physics, Anthropology and Science to the Humanities to serve as a member of Columbia University’s World Tour. As an author, Evans wrote “Nothing To Fear,” a book about J. Robert Oppenheimer, who created the Atomic Bomb. Evans befriended and defended Oppenheimer against the attacks of Senator Joseph McCarthy.

Evans founded the world renowned Philadelphia Coffee Concerts and the International Chamber of Orchestra Society. For 35 years, he produced Chamber Symphony Orchestras and hosted Classical artists from all over the world. During President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty,” Evans was appointed Czar of Philadelphia and was responsible for over $350 million coming to the city, some of which went to establish the “Head Start” and “Get Set” programs. By 1970, he was appointed by the President of the United States, Governor of Pennsylvania, and Mayor of Philadelphia to organize the nation’s 200th Anniversary Celebration. A year later, after researching the academic deficiencies still plaguing inner city and minority students, Evans founded the American Foundation for Negro Affairs, which is now known as the American Foundation for Nationality Affairs (AFNA). The AFNA National Education and Research Fund has assisted over 20,000 students gain entry and ultimately graduate from hundreds of colleges, universities, medical and law schools. Through Evans’ vision, AFNA has produced over 750 medical physicians, 550 lawyers, 96 PhD’s, and 4,900 college graduates.


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February 5 Raymond T. Jones
Raymond is currently the Community Relations Coordinator of the Neighborhood Transportation Initiative. He is also the founder of Men United for a Better Philadelphia, which involves a group of African-American men who travel to depressed areas in North Philadelphia in support of the city’s “Safe Streets Initiative”.

Jones serves as the chair North Philadelphia Business Chamber of Commerce and is actively involved in promoting higher education and post- graduate studies for minority students as the chair Congressman Chaka Fattah’s Educational Advancement Alliance. He is active in the North Philadelphia YMCA providing family outreach programs to families and was recently sworn into the city’s Tax Commission.
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