A long-time radio personality, a business developer and community activist, a dedicated sports volunteer, and several “unsung heroes” are among those to be honored at this year’s annual Lycoming County Brotherhood Alliance banquet to be held on Wednesday, May 3, at the Genetti Hotel.
The guest speaker for the banquet has overcome some daunting obstacles to be an example and inspiration to others. That speaker is Loretta Claiborne.
She was born partially blind and intellectually challenged; she was unable to walk until she was four years old —eventually, she ran. She would cross the finish line of 26 marathons, twice placing among the Top 100 women at the Boston Marathon. She has won medals in dozens of events. She introduced President Bill Clinton at the 1995 Special Olympics.
She was honored with the 1996 ESPN Espy “Arthur Ashe Award for Courage.” Her inspiring story has been told in a Disney Production film — “The Loretta Claiborne Story.” Her story has also been recounted in a biography titled In Her Stride.
The “William Picklener Community Service Award” winners are Ken Sawyer and Frank Pellegrino.
Sawyer is the veteran play-by-play announcer for Williamsport Area High School and news and sports director for WRAK Radio. He has lent his voice to the Little League World Series Radio Network and is an assistant coach for Little Mountaineer Little League. He has served in various capacities for fundraising campaigns by civic and nonprofit organizations in Lycoming County. He is a proud Vietnam War veteran, having served there from 1969-1970.
He has served his home church, the Newberry Church of Christ, in various capacities.
In 2002, Sawyer was honored with Lycoming County United Way’s Douglas C. Dickey Humanitarian Award and, in 1989, was honored with the Williamsport Rotary Club’s Non-Rotarian of the Year Award. He also has won Best Sports Play-by-Play of the Year from the Pennsylvania Association of Broadcasters numerous times. He is an inductee into the West Branch Valley Sports Hall of Fame.
Frank G. Pellegrino, founder and former executive vice president of Primus Technologies, served as president or CEO of numerous businesses in Lycoming and surrounding counties and serves as board president for the Hiawatha, chairman of the Williamsport Municipal Airport Authority, and is on the boards for the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, Williamsport YWCA, and the Susquehanna Health Foundation. He previously served on Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Perkins Planning and Participatory Committee, Bloomsburg University’s industrial advisory council for the electronics engineering technology degree program, the boards for the First Community Foundation Partnership of Pennsylvania and the Community Arts Center and the governance board for St. John Neumann Regional Academy, among others.
Pellegrino was named the 2022 Philanthropist of the Year by the Central Pennsylvania chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and won the Boy Scouts of America’s Distinguished Citizen Award in 2017. He lives in Williamsport. In 2018 he was the recipient of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank’s “Hunger-Hero Philanthropist Award.”
Tim Saar is this year’s Ray Keyes Sports Award recipient.
He has been a key leader in the Jersey Shore Softball Association for the past 39 years.
He is proudest of his volunteer activities with Little League Baseball/Softball, serving in many capacities with his local league. He is perhaps most noted there for his extensive time spent umpiring. He served for five years as a softball consultant for District 12.
He is involved with other sports as well. He served as a volunteer with the Jersey Shore Area Youth Wrestling Association from 2010-2016.
He has also served on the Jersey Shore Area High School Sports Auxiliary staff for 27 years.
And finally, six Unsung Hero Awards will be presented. They will be presented to Rick Armstead, Sharon Colt, John and Sue Best, Rebecca Elkins, and Hurley Kane. They are winning this award for “their service to the homeless, senior citizens (and) young adults with challenging home situations.”
The mission of Lycoming County Brotherhood Alliance is to actively promote tolerance of all religious, civic, and political beliefs to demonstrate commitment to the promotion and maintenance of the cultural, racial, and social fabric of the greater Williamsport Area and all of Lycoming County.
The LCBA sponsors an annual trip to the Holocaust Museum located in Washington, D.C. This annual trip is for high school and college students and has taken place every year since the Museum opened.
The LCBA sponsors a Diversity Tour. The Diversity Tour was started in 2018 to allow individuals to better understand the different cultures in our immediate area.
The Community Outreach mission of the LCBA is focused on promoting brotherhood throughout the community through the use of speakers, projects, and events throughout the year. These programs are designed by LCBA in conjunction with community leaders with a two-fold purpose: to meet a specific need within the community and, by doing so, promote brotherhood, tolerance, and harmony through the activities or functions of the project/event.
