Family members and friends of Gloria Redd will memorialize her on Sunday, Oct. 13, during an 11 a.m. service at Northeast Baptist Church.
Redd, a longtime Frankford activist, died on Aug. 19 of lung cancer. She was 69 and a longtime member of Northeast Baptist Church.
On Aug. 11, dozens of her family members and friends paid tribute to her outside her home at Whitehall Apartments, a Philadelphia Housing Authority facility.
Redd was unable to attend because she was in the hospital.
There was plenty of food, and a disc jockey entertained the crowd. The courtyard was decorated with flowers and balloons.
Redd was the longtime president of the tenant council and is credited with maintaining a computer lab and helping the area around her Foulkrod Place home look tidy.
In addition, she was a longtime committeewoman and chairwoman of the 23rd Ward Democratic Committee.
A widow, she had four sons, one daughter, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
She also took a dozen or so young people into her home so they could get their lives straightened out.
Over the years, she volunteered to help provide lunches for needy children and deliver various services and resources for residents of Whitehall and the surrounding Frankford community.
She was particularly active during the holidays, securing turkeys for Thanksgiving and toys for Christmas.
State Rep. James Clay (D-179th dist.) visited Redd in the hospital on Aug. 11 and later attended her party, where he handed her children a citation in her honor from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. ••
