Mayoral Musings: Lansdale’s Dr. Frank Boston Memorialized

In the fall of 2020, Dr. Francis Jayraj and a small team of community members reached out to me to discuss the legacy of Lansdale’s own Dr. Frank Boston. Admittedly, it was a story I had heard only a portion of prior to that day. A few residents had shared memories they had of him from time to time with me, but nothing as substantial as what was shared with me on that fall day. Dr. Jayraj and George Whitehair shared the full story of Dr. Boston with me and showcased just how much he had achieved in our community and for emergency response medicine.

Following that meeting, I penned a musing on Dr. Boston, doing my best to share some of that history and to help encourage the continued revival of the story of a great doctor, an honored veteran, and a passionate community member.

Two years later, I am proud to say that thanks to the hard work of Dr. Jayraj, George Whitehair, and Jefferson Hospital, Dr. Frank Boston will be displayed and prominently celebrated at the medical facility that he helped establish all those years ago — Lansdale Hospital.

It is so important that we honor our past to build toward a better future. Honoring Dr. Boston, in this fashion, was more than just a nice thing to do. It was the right thing to do. Correcting the errors of the past is a critical component of ensuring that our history is complete and told forthrightly.

Lansdale, and the greater North Penn Area, is better because every person who walks into Lansdale Hospital will have the opportunity to learn about Dr. Boston, what he overcame, and how his service changed our community and our lives for the better. That opportunity is worth its weight in gold, and will encourage others to walk in his steps and be reminded that they too can leave a lasting imprint on the places they hold dear by helping all of us move forward together.

I cannot thank Dr. Jayraj, his team of dedicated researchers, and Jefferson Hospital for taking the time to properly honor Dr. Boston and to ensure that all the North Penn Area can share in his legacy and learn from our shared past.

(Mayoral Musings is a weekly op-ed column submitted to North Penn Now, courtesy of Lansdale Borough Mayor Garry Herbert.)

See also:

Mayoral Musings: Lansdale 150th Parade and the Class of 2035

Mayoral Musings: Municipal 5G and Fiber Infrastructure

Mayoral Musings: GIS – How We Keep Track of Everything

Mayoral Musings: Commercial Vacancy Registry Update

Mayoral Musings: Autism Awareness Month