Dare I say, the news has been good… for Philadelphia.
Let’s start with the Forbes Under 30 Summit, the East Coast version of Austin’s SXSW, which wrapped on Wednesday. Whether it becomes the annual millennial-fest that organizers are hoping for remains to be seen. But what we do know is that Forbes considered only one city for the event – ours, and it brought more than 1,000 “young entrepreneurs and game-changers” to town from all over the country. The Summit conveniently overlapped with the awarding of the National Constitution Center’s prestigious Liberty Medal, bestowed this year upon the courageous Pakistani teenager, a young woman named Malala Yousafzai who since defying Islamic extremists has inspired generations of girls (and boys, too, we hope), and focused the eyes of the world on Philadelphia while she was here.
Then there’s the Philadelphia Flower Show, the Philadelphia Zoo and The Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts. I heard a report on my morning commute that the 2014 presentation of the Flower Show took the top prize in the International Festival and Events Association competition, besting the likes of the Kentucky Derby Festival, the Rose Bowl Parade, the Indianapolis 500 Festival, and the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. Nice, right? The Association of Zoos and Aquariums awarded America’s First Zoo with 2014’s Most Innovative Exhibit honor for Zoo360, Philadelphia’s new animal exploration trails; and The Kimmel Center was named along with South Kensington’s Front + Palmer by Brides magazine as two of the top wedding venues in the country.
Fingers crossed, Pope Francis, himself, will preside over next September’s World Meeting of Families, the world’s largest Catholic gathering of families, right here in Philadelphia.
Did I mention the Eagles are 5 and 2?
Makes a girl – and a city – proud.
