26th Annual Donley Awards

On October 1, 2022, CSC held our 26^th Annual Donley Awards. Vicky Kistler, Ruth & Charlie Marcon and Paula Margraf were this year’s recipients. Our first recipient is Vicky Kistler from City of Allentown.  Vicky has spent her career devoted to helping families in Allentown, she has served in various roles in Allentown including Communicable Disease Manager, Director of Health and Director of Community and Economic Development. Vicky’s Healthy Kids Healthy Allentown anti-hunger efforts received a governor’s award for excellence.

Our next Donley award recipients are Ruth and Charlie Marcon. Charlie and Ruth Marcon have been involved in the Lehigh Valley community since the late 1960’s.  Among the many organizations with which they have been involved, Charlie Marcon, chief executive officer of Duggan & Marcon, Inc, is past board president of the Allentown Symphony Association and chaired its 60th anniversary campaign. He presently serves as chair of the Board of the National Museum of Industrial History. At the root of the Marcon’s work & philanthropy in the Lehigh Valley is social justice. They are proactive about social justice and work to address the root causes of inequity. The Marcon’s involvement over the last 50 years has encompassed many different community organizations, many of which impact children and their families in the Lehigh Valley. 

Our next Donley award recipient is Paula Margraf. Paula Margraf has devoted over 35 years serving the most vulnerable children and families. She was first introduced to early learning and Head Start as a nursing student at Georgetown University, working in a community health center. Paula joined CSC in 1999, as Director of Early Head Start. In her various roles, including CEO, she achieved great success while advancing the mission of CSC.  Paula is responsible for the opening and expansion of the Safe Start centers, expansion of Head Start programming, establishing the Learning Hub in downtown Allentown, and expansion of the Early Learning Resource Centers to five regions. CSC was named a top workplace and National Head Start Association (NHSA) Program of Excellence during her leadership.

Ed Donley was so passionate about the importance of early learning. Ed and his wife INEZ believed that all children should have the opportunity to succeed. The awards are named after the Donley’s, whose combined achievements improved the lives of thousands of children and their families.

Their many efforts included helping to build the KidsPeace campus in Orefield, modernize the Allentown Library and expand Lehigh Valley Hospital. Mr. Donley founded the Lehigh Valley Business-Education Partnership and the Pennsylvania Partnership for Children. He helped presidents, the business community and the state understand that investing in high-quality early education and child development has its own dividends –less remedial education and less juvenile delinquency, greater academic success and better graduation rates.

This year’s winners, like Ed and Inez Donley are people who are committed to helping children succeed. They have had immeasurable effects on thousands of children. Congrats to our 2022 Donley Award Winners!