HARRISBURG (March 4, 2022) -- The Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Conference of County Bar Leaders (CCBL) has honored all Pennsylvania county bar executive directors with Arthur J. Birdsall Awards. The awards recognize the exceptional efforts taken by county bar leaders to keep their association members informed, safe and active during the pandemic. The awards were presented during the 56th Annual Seminar of the Conference of County Bar Leaders held Feb. 24-26 in Lancaster.
Many county bar association executive directors quickly expanded their technological skills so their members could hold meetings and programs virtually thereby staying engaged and informed during the pandemic. Many developed new wellness programming designed to maintain social connections that were stressed, especially during the early months of the pandemic.
The Birdsall Award is given to a county bar executive who demonstrates professional excellence, who is committed to the success of his or her bar association and who significantly enhances the stature of that bar association. It is named in honor of Arthur J. Birdsall, PBA’s county bar services director who retired after nearly 40 years of support to local bar associations.
This is the first time in the history of the Birdsall Awards that there have been multiple award winners in a single year.
The Conference of County Bar Leaders, whose membership includes leaders from county bar associations throughout the state and from the Pennsylvania Bar Association, organizes a yearly educational conference focusing on the exchange of innovative bar association projects and ideas and on the development of mutually beneficial relationships among bar leaders who improve the legal profession.
Award winners include the following bar association executive directors:
B. Bohleke, Adams County Bar Association
Dave Blaner, Allegheny County Bar Association
Suellen Verlihay, Beaver County Bar Association
Kori Walter, Berks County Bar Association
Greg Nardi, Bucks County Bar Association
Janis Hackett, Butler County Bar Association
Robin Mitchell Hagins, Cambria County Bar Association
Sheri Ryan, Carbon County Bar Association
Ken Stanton, Centre County Bar Association
Matt Holliday, Chester County Bar Association
Shelly Sydnor, Cumberland County Bar Association
Patrice Merzanis, Dauphin County Bar Association
Bill Baldwin, Delaware County Bar Association
Julie Kresge, Erie County Bar Association
Garnet Gordon, Fayette County Bar Association
Amelia Ambrose, Franklin County Bar Association
Lisa Driendl-Miller, Lancaster Bar Association
Lee Ann Munley, Lackawanna Bar Association
JoEllen Thomas, Lawrence County Bar Association
Linda Kerkeslager, Lebanon County Bar Association
Ray Bridgeman, Bar Association of Lehigh County
Michele Frey, Lycoming Law Association
Debby Arner, Mercer County Bar Association
Denise Vicario, Montgomery Bar Association
Mary Beth Leeson, Northampton County Bar Association
Debra Moyer, Northumberland County Bar Association
Harvey Hurdle, Philadelphia Bar Association
Charlotte Green, Schuylkill County Bar Association
Alahna O’Brien, Westmoreland Bar Association
Kathy Sabol, Washington County Bar Association
Joe Burke, Wilkes-Barre Law and Library Association
Victoria Connor, York County Bar Association
Founded in 1895, the Pennsylvania Bar Association strives to promote justice, professional excellence and respect for the law; improve public understanding of the legal system; facilitate access of legal services; and serve the lawyer members of the state’s largest organized bar association.