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Montgomery County Community College: Students Help To Honor The Life Of A Local Hero
Two Montgomery County Community College students were among 15 student volunteers who Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick recently recognized ...
Diane VanDyke
June 16, 2021
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Two Montgomery County Community College students were among 15 student volunteers
who Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick recently recognized for their assistance with getting
national attention for a local African American hero, Dr. Frank Erdman Boston.
MCCC students Zack Whitehair and Patrick Javier assisted with the proofreading and
editing of materials the group collectively worked on to share the story about Dr.
Boston and his many contributions. The students volunteered to help the Boston Legacy Foundation, a local nonprofit organization that seeks to recognize the historic contributions
of Dr. Boston and other unsung heroes, veterans and African Americans who helped to
shape the nation’s history, according to its Facebook page.
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Dr. Boston (1890-1960) was a World War I veteran, physician and resident of Lansdale.
He was born and raised in Philadelphia and attended Lincoln University and then Medico-Chirurgical
College of Pharmacy and Medico-Chirurgical Medical School, graduating in 1915. In
World War I, he served in the U.S. Army Medical Reserve Corps and was a medical officer
with the 317th Engineers Regiment of the 92nd Division. He served in France during the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918.
Following the war, he returned to Philadelphia and worked as a surgeon at Mercy Hospital.
He liked to visit Lansdale to go fishing along the Perkiomen Creek, and eventually
made it his home. In 1934, he established the Elm Terrace Hospital at Seventh and
Broad Streets in Lansdale. The hospital later was renamed North Penn Hospital. He
also started the First Aide Emergency Squad, which is now the Volunteer Medical Service
Corps.
Researcher and historian George Whitehair and Dr. Francis Jeyaraj are part of the
Foundation team, which also includes Dr. Robert DeFinis, an accomplished author, teacher,
coach and community leader; and Oulimata Sow, an immigrant from Senegal, Africa, and
a Penn State alumna who is fluent in six languages. Both Whitehair and Dr. Jeyaraj
have been involved with Lansdale’s annual International Spring Festival for many years,
which was started by Dr. Jeyaraj.
Through his community volunteer work, Whitehair wrote a book about the contributions
of immigrants to the local area, “We Are You,” and in the process, learned about Boston,
and wanted to help spread the information about him and his work. That led to his
second book when Whitehair and Dr. Jeyaraj created a commemorative 130th-anniversary pictorial history book about Dr. Boston. A complete biography is being
written and will be released later this year.
“Through my involvement with the International Spring Festival which typically attracts
6,000 to 7,000 people, I’ve become experienced with coordinating many volunteers,”
said Whitehair, who has enlisted high school, college and graduate students to assist
with this project, using their many talents.
Some of the students have been helping to translate the history into different languages,
including Spanish, Korean, Arabic, Hebrew and Tamil, among others, so the information
will be available to everyone, while others have been helping with research and editing.
Still others helped create video and PowerPoint presentations.
The Foundation’s goal is to get national recognition for Dr. Boston and his accomplishments
through many avenues, including a third U.S. Presidential Citation.
“We have citations from Presidents Eisenhower and Truman, and we would like to get
a third from President Biden,” Whitehair said.
On June 30, the Boston Legacy Foundation, collaborating with the TriCounty Community
Network, is hosting a special dinner presentation about several new initiatives underway,
including a comic book by Khoi Pham and Heather Wilson Pham. Khoi Pham is a renowned
comic book illustrator whose artworks include DC Comic’s Teen Titans and Marvel’s
Mighty Avengers, X-Men Legacy and Spiderman, and Heather Wilson Pham is a behavior
specialist and coach. Other plans include a stage performance of Dr. Boston’s life
to be launched at Temple University’s Performing Arts Theater in the Fall.
During Black History Month, the Lansdale Library and the Bucks County Community College
each hosted a panel discussion highlighting the legacy of Dr. Boston. Bucks County
Commissioner Diane Ellis Marseglia and Montgomery County Boar Commissioners Chair
Valerie Arkoosh were participants in these discussions.
“Dr. Boston is a hero for all of us and is bringing us all together as we work on
this project,” said Whitehair.
Visit the Boston Legacy Foundation for more information about Dr. Frank Erdman Boston, his contributions and the Boston
Legacy Foundation.
This press release was produced by the Montgomery County Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.