RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Ella Jenkins was born in Saint Louis, Missouri, on August 6, 1924, grew up in the south side of Chicago, and is a long-time resident of the City of Chicago; and
WHEREAS, A gifted musician and performer, Ella Jenkins produced her first album in 1957, Call-And-Respond: Rhythmic Group Singing, and has produced thirty-nine other albums through the Smithsonian Folkways label, including the 1995 album Multicultural Children's Songs, which is the most popular Smithsonian Folkways release to date; and
WHEREAS, Ella Jenkins has traveled extensively in the US and abroad, performing her songs on all the seven continents, including Antarctica, and offering workshops on music education around the world; and
WHEREAS, Internationally known as the First Lady of Children's Music, Ella Jenkins has had a lasting impact on children's lives, as well as those of parents and fellow music educators; and
WHEREAS, In 1999, Ella Jenkins received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers Foundation. She was the first recipient in the field of Children's Music and the first woman selected for the honor; and
WHEREAS, Ella Jenkins is also the recipient of several other awards and recognitions, including a Grammy Nomination in 1999 for Best Musical Album for Children for Ella Jenkins and a Union of Friends, a Grammy Association Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004, a Grammy for Best Musical Album for Children for Sharing Cultures with Ella Jenkins in 2005 and a Grammy Award for Best Musical Album for children for cELLAbration: A Tribute to Ella Jenkins in 2005; and
WHEREAS, A highly esteemed citizen, Ella Jenkins, in collaboration with the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, has acted as our Nation's delegate to Hong Kong, the People's Republic of China, and the former Soviet Union, received an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Human Letters from the Erikson Institute in 2004, and was voted the 2005 Chicagoan of the year by Chicago Magazine; and
WHEREAS, A significant contributor to Chicago's multi-cultural heritage, Ella Jenkins performed from time to time in the corner plaza located on the east side of Sedgwick Street and the south side of Wisconsin Street; and
WHEREAS, A leading performer of children's music for fifty years, Ella Jenkins celebrated her 90th birthday on August 6, 2014; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, That the corner plaza on the east side of Sedgwick Street and the south side of Wisconsin Street, currently maintained by the Department Transportation as part of Ogden Mall, be named the "Ella Jenkins Plaza" in recognition of the achievements of Ella Jenkins, and as a symbol of the esteem in which Ella Jenkins is held by the Mayor, the City Council and the residents of Chiaago. r\ ^ /~\ (\