Greater Phoenix Leadership celebrates 52nd anniversary

Greater Phoenix Leadership is an organization of leading CEOs aligning leadership and resources at the intersection of the business, education, philanthropy and public policy sectors to improve economic vitality and quality of life.

The mission of Greater Phoenix Leadership or GPL is to improve the greater Phoenix area and the state of Arizona by bringing together talent, resources and leadership to create action on priority issues.

Over 50 years ago, three Phoenix businessmen, Gene Pulliam, Frank Snell and Tom Chauncey, convened the State’s top business and civic leaders to address major issues facing the community. Along with the Governor Raul Castro, the group met on February 4, 1975, and prioritized transportation, crime and education as the most pressing issues. The group called themselves the Phoenix 40 and soon emerged as the most influential group of community leaders, helping shape the future of the state.

Some of GPL’s most noteworthy accomplishments are the establishment of the Silent Witness Program, the creation of Phoenix Civic Plaza, founding Valley Leadership, assisting in bringing the NFL Arizona Cardinals from St. Louis in 1988, leading the effort to fund freeway and regional transportation, and helping to establish the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday in 1992.

Ken Van Winkle, the Vice Chair and Pam Kehaly, the Immediate Past Board Chair of the Greater Phoenix Leadership joined “Arizona Horizon” to discuss the organization’s impact on the Valley.