FEATURE: MAYOR JIM KENNEY LEADERSHIP FROM THE HEART

MAYOR JIM KENNEY LEADERSHIP FROM THE

A photo essay by Ted Goldman at TGoldmanPhotography.com PREFACE

I’ve lived in the suburbs of Philadelphia for more than forty years. I’ve never followed city politics, but rather national politics and for the last two years it’s been almost a full time job. Caring for people seems to have fallen off of the agenda for many politicians. I was not looking to be interested in Philadelphia’s 99th mayor who came into office on January 4, 2016. This interest found me as part of two photo essay projects — “Olney Advocates: Diversity’s Power To Change and Unite People” and “Finding the Humanity of Refugees.”

This story is not about politics or evaluating Mayor Jim Kenney’s job performance — that’s not my skill or interest. This story is about understanding the compassion that I’ve seen in him and that is often missed in typical political coverage — the human experience. It captured my interest and I hope it will capture yours. INTRODUCTION

In June 2017, while I was working on the Olney project, “Passport PHL” came to Olney: “to encourage more Philadelphia residents to explore the city’s diverse neighborhoods and immigrantowned businesses.” I was there to photograph the event for my friends at the North 5th Street Revitalization Project. Mayor Kenney came to Olney to sample great food at five diverse eateries. 8 ONE STEP AWAY

LEADERSHIP FROM THE HEART

WHO IS MAYOR KENNEY?

As we went from eatery to eatery the mayor was very friendly to each staff and readily posed for pictures that would surely end up on their walls as mementos of a special visit. There was no way to judge if the mayor was being genuine or just doing what was expected of him.

But there was a moment that was unplanned. As we walked towards an eatery, the mayor noticed three children hiding behind a parking meter. I have no idea if they knew this was the mayor, but he was wearing an intimidating business suit not typical of Olney and was followed by an entourage. While he didn’t have to do this, he broke ranks and extended a friendly hand.

When I reviewed my images later in the day, I thought: “Who is this man?” This question would remain unanswered for a year until I next saw Mayor Kenney in action.