Vincent W. O'Connor Public Service Award

Picture of Vincent W. O'Connor.

The Vincent W. O'Connor Public Service Award is named for the late Vincent W. O'Connor, a former councilman with a lifelong record of service to others.  It is presented annually to a deserving individual from Elizabethtown.

The son of the late Joseph and Blanche O'Connor, Vince was born in 1920 in Bainbridge.  He was a 1936 graduate of Bainbridge High School and attended Maytown High School.  He was employed briefly as a salesman for the Garber Motor Company and Risser Motors before joining Prudential Life Insurance Company.  He spent 24 years as one of the company's top underwriters, retiring in 1982.

Vince had a long tradition of public service.  He served a six-year term on the Conoy Township School Board, was a member of the Elizabethtown Area School Board, and served as Mayor of Elizabethtown for six years.  A Borough Council member for more than 20 years, he received the 1994 Thomas Chrostwaite Award from the Pennsylvania Association of Boroughs.  He served on Council until his death in 1997.

Vince also served on the Lancaster County Redevelopment Authority Region 1 Advisory Committee and was a member of the Elizabethtown United Council of Churches, coordinating a program for economically disadvantaged people.  He previous volunteered his time with both the local Senior Center and the State Department of Aging, working with the Apprise program, and also volunteered his time at St. Joseph's Hospital in Lancaster helping senior citizens with their health insurance forms.  Vince was a member of the Rotary Club, and in 1995 was named Citizen of the Year by the Elizabethtown Loyal Order of the Moose Lodge No. 596.

VWO Award Recipients

"In recognition of outstanding service and dedication to the residents of Elizabethtown Borough"

  • 1997 - Dr. Rollin Pepper
  • 1998 - Ron Good
  • 1999 - Dr. Miles Newman
  • 2000 - Leroy Eberly
  • 2000 - Kevin Dolan & Robert Enck & Gregory Gobrecht
  • 2002 - Dr. Edward White
  • 2003 - E. Margaret Gabel
  • 2004 - Dr. Henry L. Kreider
  • 2005 - Douglas W. Pfautz
  • 2006 - Wilbur "Bud" Weaver
  • 2007 - Lloyd and Patsy Reed
  • 2008 - Rodney Fink
  • 2009 - Allthea M. Johnson
  • 2010 - Ken Reighard
  • 2011 - Dr. Theodore E. Long
  • 2012 - Debra E. Dupler
  • 2013 - Gail J. Viscome
  • 2014 - Meade G. Bierly
  • 2015 - Warren G. Mueller, Jr.
  • 2016 - John Buch & Kenneth D. Myers
  • 2017 - Doug Lamb, Dolores Reidenbach & Dr. C. Dale Treese
  • 2018 - Barry L. Acker
  • 2019 - Robert Hollinger
  • 2020 - Glen Bootay
  • 2021 - Howard "Hob" Kroesen
  • 2022 - Laurie Shepler