The light shines on

You know that voice inside your head. It’s the voice leaning in at 3 a.m., calling attention to an idea that sets the course of your coming weeks. The voice is persistent and sounds as disruptive as it is assuring that the forthcoming effort will be worth it. The voice becomes a collaboration towards a goal to create novel opportunities for others and for the betterment of our surrounding communities. In short, the voice of drive and commitment is undeniable to those who hear it, and especially to those who, in turn, opt to harness the energy it invents.

Our community has a voice. We accomplish a lot. We commend, empathize, plan, teach, learn, coach, create, build, serve, explore, mourn, debate, challenge, vote, react, evolve, we celebrate, and we give. And when we give, we are at our finest.

Once a year, through its Shine a Light program, the Swarthmore Centennial Foundation recognizes a community member for the voice they use to pursue and sustain social justice, equity, inclusion, and more. Respectively, Jeannine Osayande (the inaugural honoree), Sara

Kelly, Dr. John Alston, and Jennifer Kennedy previously stood in this spotlight for creating, in their own ways, a more vibrant, healthy, harmonious, and advocative community.

This year, the Foundation is honored to shine a light on Martha Perkins, a freelance artist, proprietor of Gallery on Park, and devoted curator of a broad table that offers a seat for all. Perkins shared why it’s important to provide space for people in our community when times feel difficult and isolating.

“Many people fear for their safety and feel they do not have a voice,” Perkins said. “It’s important to help them find their way outside, find their voice, and express themselves in spaces where safety is a given. We can all help–maybe now is the time for you to help raise the voice of those who are troubled by trying to find it on their own.”

These words help paint the vision that infuses ideas into many of Perkins’ creations.

Harvey Oak Mercantile shares a footprint with Gallery on Park, and is run by local celebrity Shannon Elliott, Perkins’ “shop-wife.”

“While Martha does own a business that includes local artists’ work, most of her art and advocacy is performed through volunteering,” Elliott said. “She does these things because she deeply cares about motivating and helping others and making sure others feel valued and respected no matter who they are, where they come from, or who they love.”

Following an epiphany in 2023, Swarthmore Pride was founded as a celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community, and as a cultivator of healthy selfexpression. Shortly after helping to form the organization, Perkins ran a fundraiser that created a message for all to receive: let’s be clear, Pride is here.

The message shines bright and is so genuine that colors of the rainbow literally dance across the streets of Swarthmore’s crosswalks as permanent badges, symbolizing pathways designed to bridge gaps, connect ends, and safely guide anyone from one side to the other without bias or prejudice. Art speaks.

“I love building community and feel super fortunate to have been able to install rainbow crosswalks as a beacon and symbol of acceptance and inclusion,” Perkins said.

Perkins founded and is now the president and exhibition chair of Swarthmore Friends of the Arts, which is responsible for organizing art exhibits in Swarthmore’s Borough Hall. The organization’s mission creates a space for free expression of art through various mediums. The month of June showcases an exhibit focused on painting and photography created by artists from the WallingfordSwarthmore district.

“I found it very hard to sell my art when I was younger, and navigating that on my own was a challenge,” Perkins said. “Opening my own gallery and developing Friends of the Arts enabled me to create accessible runways for other artists to land, exhibit, and let their art be known.”

Please join the Swarthmore Centennial Foundation on Thursday, June 12, at 6:30 p.m., as we recognize and celebrate Perkins at Swarthmore Town Center’s Nights in the Ville. We hope to see you there.

Martha, congratulations!