WILMINGTON — The Class of 2024 for the Delaware Business Hall of Fame features leaders in Delaware’s arts community, but also most notably outgoing
Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki for his past work at the head of the Riverfront Development Corporation.
Others selected for induction this year are Wilmington Director of Cultural Affairs
Tina Betz,
WISH owner and muralist Christian Kanienberg, arts advocate Eunice LaFate of
LaFate Gallery and
Delaware Theatre Company founder Cleveland Morris.
The five will be celebrated in an Oct. 8 ceremony held at the Delaware Theater Company in Wilmington. They will also join more than 78 other leaders who have been honored since the hall was established in 1990. The Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame first started as a partnership between Hagley Museum and Junior Achievement of Delaware to honor retired titans of industry for their economic and workforce development work in the First State.
Over time, the achievement later expanded to include current leaders who serve as role models to Junior Achievement students in various fields. The 2024 class focuses primarily on the
creative economy as a way for the award to diversify what industries are represented in the state.
Junior Achievement of Delaware President Rob Eppes explained that seven years ago, the Business Leaders Hall of Fame Board of Directors started a strategic planning initiative on how to broaden the lens of the nomination process when it came to industries and locations. He also said it was time to better reflect on the career pathways of the future rather than what has long been established.
“We felt that maybe our past honorees were not serving a certain segment of the population by not having any arts organizations. This class was really born out of a way to integrate the arts in terms of economics and philanthropy. It's not just about patronizing the arts, but the careers that exist there as well,” Eppes told the Delaware Business Times.
This year’s lone inductee who does not represent the arts is Purzycki who will be retiring from office in January 2025. He will be inducted into the Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame largely due to his role as the first executive Riverfront Development Corp. which aimed to reimagine the desolate shore of the Christina River in Wilmington as a bustling center of activity.
Today, the Riverfront is a destination in northern Delaware, complete with restaurants, museums, the Frawley Stadium and apartment complexes that brought around 1,400 residents to the city. Purzycki was also known for his time on the New Castle County Council as well as his eight-year run as Wilmington’s mayor.
“It is a great honor to be recognized by Junior Achievement for my years of work on the Wilmington Riverfront, but it is an honor that can rightfully be shared with so many others,” Purzycki told the Delaware Business Times in a prepared statement.
Also in city government, Betz has been largely responsible for many of the initiatives that keep Wilmington’s arts heritage alive. With more than 20 years in the role, she is one of the point people that organizes the annual Clifford Brown Jazz Festival, which draws in major stars like Herbie Hancock and five-time Grammy nominee Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah. Betz also manages the city’s monthly Art Loop and the city’s arthouse film theater Theatre N.
“I am honored to be named a 2024 Delaware Business Hall of Fame Laureate. This recognition underscores the vital role of the arts in enriching individuals, strengthening communities, and contributing to the world,” Betz said in a prepared statement.
“The arts can inspire, heal, and unite us, fostering a deeper understanding of our humanity,’ she added. “Through cultural expression, we build bridges between people and communities, sparking creativity and innovation that benefit society. I am proud to be part of this celebration that highlights the significant impact of the arts on the Wilmington community and beyond.”
Morris was one of the founders of the Delaware Theater Company and he helped drive the artistic vision and reputation of the theater. He was instrumental in persuading the company’s board and the city to move the Delaware Theater Company from a firehouse on French Street to the Riverfront where it still is today.
“When I left my position at the Delaware Theatre Company and my home in Wilmington and headed south on Interstate-95, I felt sure that my name, like that of John Keates, was ‘writ in water,’ he told the Delaware Business Times. “Now, 25 years later, it is almost overwhelming to discover that I would still be remembered. This honor is especially meaningful to me, coming as it does from an organization I admire so deeply, the Junior Achievement of Delaware. I am very grateful.”
Kanienberg is well known for his striking art and large-scale compositions around Delaware, most notably in Wilmington. His work includes murals on restaurants and shops in Trolley Square, the “Some Gave All” tribute outside the Dover Air Force Base commissioned by DelDOT and the “Welcome to Wilmington” mural on Delaware Avenue Bridge.
LaFate is a self-taught artist from Jamaica and owns a gallery on lower Market Street, which has become a Wilmington mainstay over the years. The gallery first started as a home operation in 1993 and has evolved into a vision center. Her work has been featured in several businesses and through several exhibits over the years.
Tickets for the 2024 Delaware Business Leaders Hall of Fame reception and induction ceremonies
are now available.
