Virginia Kricun, a longtime resident of Radnor, who helped create the Avenue of the Arts in Philadelphia, was a civic activist recognized for her statement, “Get involved. Make a difference. Be fearless.”

Mrs. Kricun, who was also a groundbreaking corporates social policy planner, died April 1. She was 84.

Mrs. Kricun especially supported groups that addressed women’s issues and made life better for the vulnerable.

She was a former banker, publisher, author and consultant, and an energetic and innovative director of community relations at Sun Co. in the 1970s and 1980s.

Mrs. Kricun was responsible for creating many effective and high-profile funding partnerships worth millions of dollars in 12 states and abroad.

She tackled the causes of women’s rights, drug addiction, housing, education, art and culture, historical preservation, and protections for nature and animals.

“A society can be judged on how it treats its most vulnerable,” she said in a video by the Chester County Community Foundation.

Mrs. Krikun helped create the Avenue of the Arts on South Broad Street in 1977 and supported the Philadelphia Green Project that generated more than 400 community gardens.

Read more about the life of Virginia Kricun and the impact she made in The Philadelphia Inquirer.