CEO of Welcome America is leaving the organization after the city took over Philly’s Fourth of July show
Michael DelBene and Welcome America Inc. announced Monday his tenure with the organization had ended.
The president and CEO of Welcome America Inc. has resigned. While the reasons were unclear for the departure, Monday’s announcement followed the city’s decision to take over Philly’s Fourth of July concert and fireworks from the group that has been involved with organizing the event since 1993.
In a statement, Michael DelBene said this year’s celebration of America’s 250th birthday — interrupted by a storm that pushed back the fireworks finale to the early hours of Sunday morning — “was a spectacular accomplishment. … I am humbled by what we have accomplished together, and excited about what lies ahead for the organization.”
DelBene had held the role since 2019. In a post to his LinkedIn account on Monday evening, DelBene said he was stepping down, and “as for what’s next? I don’t know yet. And I find that completely exhilarating!”
Welcome America is a public-private partnership that receives city and state funding as well as corporate sponsorships. Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and Councilmember Mark Squilla are board members.
It is was uncertain when Welcome America plans to name its next president and CEO. DelBene was the organization’s longest serving CEO, and the only one whose tenure spanned multiple mayoral administrations. DelBene has had a busy summer — he also has been working as an executive producer with FIFA World Cup 26 Philadelphia, overseeing the Fan Festival in Lemon Hill and other parts of the fan experience.
Despite planning Welcome America’s days of programming leading up to the nation’s 250th celebration, DelBene was not involved in the final signature event. This year, Parker’s administration took control of the city’s free concert on July Fourth from Welcoming America, rebranded it as the “One Philly: Unity Concert for America” in reference to her “One Philly: A United City” slogan, and spent significantly more taxpayer dollars in the process.
The city hired ESM Productions to put on the 250th anniversary fireworks show and concert for $15.5 million, which cost Welcome America only about $3 million to produce last year.
ESM’s pay was almost triple Welcome America’s $6.6 million budget in 2024, of which $5.3 million came from government grants, according to its federal nonprofit disclosure.
Despite a lengthy storm delay, Philly’s Fourth of July celebration went forward with performances from Will Smith, the Roots, and Meek Mill, and a fireworks show that technically began and ended on July 5 — coincidentally just a few minutes shy of 2:50 a.m.
