Kendall Wilson, veteran reporter, dies at 74

KENDALL WILSON did journalism the old-fashioned way. He developed sources, he made sure he was where the news was happening, and he wrote clear, crisp prose.

He had a knack for taking complicated subjects and making them accessible to the ordinary reader.

As a 20-year reporter for the Philadelphia Tribune, the nation's oldest black-owned newspaper, Kendall helped raise the status of the black press.

Barnett Wright, a former colleague and longtime friend, said in the Tribune that Kendall brought credibility to black newspapers.

"Sometimes people have a tendency to take the black press lightly or they sometimes have a tendency to favor what they read in the Daily News, the Inquirer, over what they read in the Tribune," Wright said.

"But what he did was, he was able to bring a degree of credibility. He made people pay attention to the black press. He made people pay attention to the things that he wrote, and everybody read Kendall."

Kendall Frank Wilson, who spent more than 35 years in the communications field, died Monday at his home in Southwest Philadelphia. He was 74.

"Whenever I saw Kendall, I felt like I needed to stand taller, be a little wiser," said Daily News editor Michael Days. "That's because he was always prepared, always on point, always engaged.

"Just by his presence and his obvious passion for journalism, he set a very high standard for those of us who followed. It's really hard to believe that he's no longer in our midst."

Kendall was much honored over his career. In 1998, he won the prestigious National Newspaper Publishers Association's A. Philip Randolph Award for a series on the struggles of black family-owned funeral homes trying to avoid corporate takeover.

In 2003, the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists honored him for his excellence in journalism. The award was presented by Tribune sports editor Donald Hunt, who said of Kendall: "He was an absolute legend. He was one of the finest writers and one of the finest human beings I've ever known. He was known and loved by everyone in the city. Everybody knew Kendall Wilson."

Stephanie Guerilus, writing in the Tribune, described Kendall's "common touch," which "allowed him to reach many lives with the stroke of his pen and the ability to write the truth."

His daughter, Kendra Thomas, said he was "just a wonderful, thoughtful, caring man and father."

"He was a real member of the Tribune family," said Robert W. Bogle, president and chief executive of the Tribune. "His stewardship transcended just being a reporter."

"Kendall seemed to know everyone in this city and in this region," said Irv Randolph, Tribune managing editor. "He was knowledgeable about the history of this city, who the players were in this city, and he just exhibited the best of what you need in terms of a journalist."

Kendall was born in Bettertown, Md., to James Oliver and Ruth Victoria Wilson. He graduated from Garnett High School in Kent County, Md., and from Virginia State College (now University) in 1955.

He was a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity and also participated in the Army ROTC program. He later served as a captain in the Army Reserves.

After he joined the Tribune staff in 1985, he covered many issues affecting the community with a focus on civil rights, government and politics. He left the paper in 2004.

Besides his daughter, he is survived by his wife, Helen "Jettie" Wilson; by five women he helped to raise - Vondele Pickens, Lisa Pearson, Karen Shanks, Nichole and Alex Wilson; his stepdaughter, Pamela Hood; four granddaughters, and Deloris Wilson-Royster, the mother of his daughter and stepdaughter.

Services: 3 p.m. Saturday at the Francis Funeral Home, 5201 Whitby Ave. Friends may call at 2 p.m. *