[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 85 (Tuesday, June 8, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1039]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING GLORIA GUARD, RETIRING AS PRESIDENT OF THE PEOPLE'S EMERGENCY 
                         CENTER OF PHILADELPHIA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. CHAKA FATTAH

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 8, 2010

  Mr. FATTAH. Madam Speaker, one of Philadelphia's most forceful and 
effective advocates for homeless women and children is moving into well 
earned retirement at the end of this month.
  Gloria Guard has been President of the People's Emergency Center 
since 1983--when she started by overseeing rented space in an old 
church that was only open weekends. On July 1 she bequeaths to her 
still-to-be-chosen successor a nationally respected $6 million agency 
that serves 400 women and children a year while developing almost 200 
affordable and special needs housing units in the Powelton neighborhood 
of West Philadelphia in the 2nd Congressional District. Not only that, 
she has led PEC to establish 25 small businesses, eliminate 110 vacant 
lots, and repair houses and storefronts seemingly everywhere in 
Powelton.
  It is a large footprint, and it is a visionary approach to the 
changing face of homelessness. It is Gloria Guard's approach. John 
Kromer, former director of Philadelphia's Office of Housing and 
Community Development, put it best in a newspaper interview about 
Gloria's retirement announcement: ``PEC is not just about homelessness. 
It's about bringing up the entire neighborhood.''
  Gloria Guard has brought $80 million into the People's Emergency 
Center and to her causes, much of it in federal affordable housing 
resources. I have been an admirer and a willing target of Gloria's 
smiling determination to get what she and her clients need. That has 
made me a frequent visitor at the joyous ribbon cutting ceremonies and 
hopeful house tours she has arranged that have pointed the way toward a 
better life for thousands of Philadelphians.
  One of the statistics Gloria Guard showcases is that over 90 percent 
of PEC's shelter and transitional housing residents remain self-
sufficient after graduating from the Center's programs. While she 
directs the hands-on work of PEC, she has stepped up as a compelling 
advocate for changes in local and national policy that reflect the 
community of the homeless that she knows so well. She has pushed hard 
to change federal priorities and funding to deal with the women and 
children who increasingly face long-term homelessness for a complexity 
of reasons, not just concentrating on the predominantly male homeless 
population that is most visible on city streets.
  Guard has stated: ``I am most proud of the hundreds of homeless 
families that we helped at PEC who today are independent, working, 
solid parents and engaged citizens--totally invisible and immersed in 
the mainstream. Formerly homeless children are succeeding in high 
school, and a number have gone on to college. I have been truly blessed 
to encounter so many good people who have overcome such extraordinarily 
difficult circumstances. They are an inspiration to all of us.''
  Gloria Guard is not only a winner, she's an award winner. Her work 
earned her the 2004 Philadelphia Award, an honor reserved for the 
city's most notable philanthropists, artists, political visionaries, 
and social activists. She has also received the Sower's Seed Award from 
Trinity Washington University (2009), the Gold Coin Award from Inglis 
Foundation (2008), and was named one of the 75 Greatest Living 
Philadelphians by the Philadelphia Eagles and Dunkin Donuts (2007) and 
Citizen Volunteer of the Year by the United Way of Southeastern 
Pennsylvania (2001). Other honors include the Community Champion Award 
of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials 
(2005), the Philadelphia Bar Foundation's Louis D. Apothaker Award 
(2000), and the Professional Women's Roundtable award for 2009.
  Now she can add yet another honor: Tonight, on Tuesday June 8, 2010, 
Gloria Guard is being feted by the People's Emergency Center and 
awarded PEC's own 2010 Imprint Award for ``Nurturing Families, 
Strengthening Families, Driving Change.'' The venue is one of 
Philadelphia's most glittering, the Crystal Tea Room at the Wanamaker 
Building, across from City Hall. The invitation beckons Gloria's 
friends, supporters, admirers, staff, volunteers, PEC alumni and 
alumnae to salute this ``passionate voice of homeless families in 
Philadelphia, the power behind neighborhood revitalization, and 
nationally recognized public policy leader who gets results. Join us to 
thank Gloria for devoting her life to social justice and the public 
interest.''
  Amen to that. Philadelphia is a better place, a more nurturing and 
supportive community, a place where women and children can find safety, 
security and vital services, because for 27 years Gloria Guard has 
worked relentlessly, passionately through the People's Emergency Center 
to end family homelessness. Gloria Guard's legacy is secure, and it is 
magnificent.

                          ____________________