Neighborhood Leader Award

Uptown resident and artist James Simon has been pivotal in his contribution to the Uptown community's evolution. In 2007, as a volunteer, James helped incorporate Uptown Partners of Pittsburgh, working closely with the Duquesne University Law Clinic and the community, and became a founding UP board member. He has served on greening, arts, and housing and economic development committees, was the UP Board Secretary and is now Co-President. He has served on the Uptown Vision Plan team, worked with Leadership Pittsburgh on our first community festival in 2009, and has volunteered to plan and help implement it since…even volunteering to design the street festival brand. He inspired the Pittsburgh Association for the Deaf (PAD), a decades old social club on the corner of his block, to join the event. For the first time, PAD opened its doors to the community to host poetry readings and sell food on the street. James also donated hours of his time and energy on photo production for our first website, www.uptownpartners.org.