Street Renamed To Honor Priest

Tulsa residents have honored the late Neighbor for Neighbor founder, former Roman Catholic priest and area hero Dan Allen, by naming a street after him.

Four street signs now designate 46th Street North between Cincinnati and Lewis Avenues as Dan Allen Boulevard.

"Dan proved a gift not only for me and for my family, but for all of Tulsa," said Pamela Henderson Vann, who submitted the petition requesting the name change to the City of Tulsa about a year ago. "He fed people; he cared for people; he helped people find their way. If there was something I could not do, I could go to Dan and he would get it done."

Henderson Vann is not done honoring Allen and his contributions. She is seeking donations for a Dan Allen memorial to be built on the original site of Neighbor for Neighbor, now a vacant lot.

Allen began his career as a parish priest but found his calling helping the poor and disenfranchised. In 1968, he founded Neighbor for Neighbor, a small, hands-on group housed in five mismatched buildings, including an old farmhouse and a gasoline station, to provide food and basic services for the disadvantaged with the assistance of churches, businesses and individuals.

Allen directed the organization for 27 years until his death in 1995.