Fellows Program inducts Class of 2007
The Fellows Class of 2007 was inducted at the tenth annual Fellows reception and dinner on Thursday, Oct. 18, 2007 at LeMont Restaurant. Larry D. Johnson, Assistant Secretary-General for Legal Affairs at the United Nations, was the keynote speaker. Johnson spoke about the role of law in international peacekeeping. Over 225 guests attended the event.
The following 73 individuals were inducted into the Fellows Class of 2007:
| William C. Andrews Dana Baiocco Todd M. Begg Cindy Trellis Bernstein Donald R. Calaiaro Jane Charlton Hon. Robert E. Colville Thomas W. Corbett, Jr. Rosemary C. Crawford James B. Cummings John R. DeAngelis Martin A. Dietz Susan DiGirolamo Hon. Kate Ford Elliott Cathie J. Fagan Hon. Thomas E. Flaherty Laurence B. Green Dawn K. Gull Donald J. Guter John B. Hayes Scott E. Henderson Dawne S. Hickton Kristen M. Humphrey Thomas R. Johnson Alice S. Johnston Gretchen Lengel Kelly Bethann R. Lloyd Ingrid Lundberg James Michael Malley J. Robert Maxwell Jonathan S. McAnney Francis Barry McCarthy Dennis McEwen Hon. Bernard McGinley Hugh F. McGough Daniel McIntyre Stephen C. Mervan, Jr. |
Sally R. Miller Deborah S. Miskovich Regis D. Murrin Paul O’Hanlon Shelly R. Pagac Patricia P. Palko Lawrence N. Paper Barbara L. Payne Susan J. Pearlstein Jon R. Perry Joel Persky Lisa M. Petruzzi Linda C. Plum David S. Pollock Elisabeth Pride Reid B. Roberts Marc Rosenwasser Rosalind Maron Ross Raymond N. Sanchas Leonard L. Scheinholtz Pamela M. Schiller M. Farley Schlass Regina M. Sestak David P. Siegel Phyllis N. Silverman John M. Silvestri Hon. D. Brooks Smith Laverne Lair Sochats Eric Soller Thelma C. Spells William L. Stang Bernadette Staroschuck ** Kenneth Steidl Kenneth M. Steinberg Robert E. Stewart Hon. Patrick R. Tamilia Mark T. Vuono |
** Accepted nomination subsequent to dinner
These 74 individuals join 558 other colleagues who have been inducted into the Fellows program, a prestigious society of attorneys who are dedicated to improving the community through public service initiatives.
The foundation also presented the 2006 ACBA Pro Bono Awards at the dinner. The awards recognize outstanding attorneys, law firms, legal departments, paralegals, and law school students who have provided exceptional pro bono legal services to disadvantaged residents in our community. The following individuals were presented with 2006 ACBA Pro Bono Awards for their outstanding service:
Lorraine M. Bittner Public Interest Attorney Award
Eileen D. Yacknin
Jane F. Hepting Individual Pro Bono Award
Melaine Shannon Rothey
Outstanding Young Lawyer Pro Bono Award
Benjamin E. Orsatti
Law Student Pro Bono Award
Joshua F. Hall
Law Firm Pro Bono Award
Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellot, LLC
New Pro Bono Initiative Award
The Wills Project & Reed Smith, LLP
Special Pro Bono Service Award
Pittsburgh Pro Bono Partnership
Paralegal Pro Bono Awards
Maureen L. Atkinson
The Wills Project
Rachel V. Klink
Family Law Custody Conciliation Pro Bono Project
Susan Logan
Anti-Predatory Lending Clinic
Peggy S. Zirckel
McKees Rocks Community Clinic
The foundation also announced the 2007 grant recipients. The foundation awarded a total of $25,000 to the following organizations:
$5,000 to JEWISH FAMILY & CHILDREN’S SERVICE OF PITTSBURGH to provide the professional supervision and oversight necessary to enable 10-12 non-immigration pro bono attorneys to represent indigent immigrants in removal proceedings through the Pittsburgh Refugee & Immigrant Assistance Center (PRIAC).
$5,000 to KIDSVOICE to complete the funding of the Independent Living Advocacy Program which advocates for the rights of teens aging out of the foster care system to receive independent living resources and services needed to transition to independent functioning as adults, including the right to education, vocation and career services, physical and mental health care, housing, relationships with caring adults, knowledge of community resources, and public benefits/services.
$4,000 to MENTAL HEALTH LEGAL SERVICES to ensure people with mental illness receive legal assistance in a timely and understanding manner, thereby ensuring the best opportunity to achieve positive resolutions to their legal problems.
$7,500 to NEIGHBORHOOD LEGAL SERVICES ASSOCIATION to develop an outreach project at area homeless shelters to ensure that all homeless individuals have access to legal advice on-site; to coordinate with other area legal services providers, pro bono attorneys, and law students regarding coverage of the various shelters within Allegheny County; and to recruit/train pro bono attorneys and law students to assist in providing outreach, advice, and representation to the homeless regarding their legal issues.
$1,000 to PITTSBURGH AIDS TASK FORCE to support the cost of the Legal Coordinator who oversees the PATF Legal Program and works with PATF’s Pro Bono Legal Network in order to provide support, help resolve clients’ legal issues, and provide assistance for legal issues particularly related to PATF clients that are not addressed elsewhere in the legal services community.
$2,500 to SNAP-PITTSBURGH to help implement a two-year pilot juvenile crime prevention strategy program, SNAP-Pittsburgh at Auberle, which will treat 63 at-risk boys (ages 6-12) per year who have engaged in the first signs of delinquency to improve their behavior and decrease the number of juvenile offenders who continue in a path of crime. If successful, SNAP may be built into the Juvenile Court's ongoing treatment budget for up to 300 boys per year.
Nominations for the Fellows Class of 2008 are being accepted. If you would like to nominate a colleague or learn more about the program, please contact Lorrie Albert at 412-402-6640 or lalbert@acba.org.