“This past year, I’ve had the honor of serving as the Community Engagement Coordinator for the Henry Ossawa Tanner House—a role that has deepened my understanding of legacy, place, and the power of collective memory. Through partnerships with libraries, after-school programs, artists, and churches—just to name a few—I’ve witnessed how local history becomes a living force when it’s rooted in community.”

Friends of the Tanner House is proud to be a launch partner with the free, virtual, open-to-the-public Africana Studies Network & Lecture Series. This project is a community-driven initiative. While many educators and students may participate, this program is not affiliated with nor officially sponsored by the School District of Philadelphia.

Friends of the Tanner House is proud to announce that we’ve partnered with Union Studio Architecture & Community Design to provide design services for the planned revitalization of the National Historic Landmark Henry Ossawa Tanner House in North Philadelphia. Our estimated six-month-long, community-informed process will deliver construction-ready documents and cost estimates to inform the comprehensive capital campaign necessary to realize the world-class site of heritage engagement and neighborhood cultural anchor we’ve been organizing since late 2021 to establish.

Our upcoming art auction fundraiser in partnership with RUSH Arts & Swann Galleries borrows ancestral inspiration and sustenance from Henry Ossawa Tanner’s The Thankful Poor. This is the opening activity of our 2025-26 Fall / Winter Appeal to which we intend to raise more than $25,000 to support the ongoing capacity-building and growth of our cultural heritage non-profit.

We’ve been planning toward this opportunity since the beginning. Friends of the Tanner House is now seeking proposals from qualified architectural firms to provide comprehensive architectural services for the full renovation of 2908 West Diamond Street in Philadelphia, PA. Submissions are due via email by June 6, 2025