Colleen Morrone is leaving the Concord Township Council at the end of the month. Members of Council and state Rep. Craig Wiliams, R-160, praised her long-standing commitment to local and county government during her final meeting on Dec. 2.
Morrone said before the meeting that she decided not to run for reelection because travel commitments for her regular job as president and CEO of Goodwill have become demanding. She is being replaced on Council by James Hunt, who won his race in November.
Council Co-Vice President John Gillespie began talking about her by reading a resolution which said Marrone “has exemplified a strong and enduring commitment to public service, contributing over two decades to the betterment of Concord Township.”
He further read how Morrone was first appointed to the township Planning Commission in 1999 and that she became the first woman on the, then, township Board of Supervisors in 2004.
In that role, he said, Morrone served “with distinction through 2011, including as vice chairperson from 2008 to 2011.”
In 2012, she became a member of the Delaware County Council, where she served through 2019.
He went on: “In November 2020, Miss Morrone returned to the municipal service as a member of the Concord Township Council, continuing to serve with integrity, insight, and dedication. Now, therefore, be it resolved that the Concord Township Council, on behalf of the residents of Concord Township, expresses sincere appreciation and gratitude to Ms. Colleen P. Morrone for her outstanding leadership and longstanding dedication and her many contributions to the community.”
Gillespie then made some non-scripted comments, saying how appreciative he has been for her “as township supervisor and township council person and for all the tremendous grants that we received from the County of Delaware…So I know I surely will miss her leadership, motivation and a lot of other words that I just can’t think of right now, but that I’m going to miss you.”
Following Gillespie’s remarks, Council President Dominic Pileggi commented, saying simply, “I will second those accolades.”
Then state Rep. Williams spoke. He mentioned how he and Morrone met and would catch up with one another at the Wawa. Their children grew up together at the Brandywine Youth Club.
“I’ve been your constituent for a long time. I’ve run for public office under your leadership…I think it’s very important that the community hears over and over again how well and how magnificently you have served this selflessly. As I was driving over this evening and thinking about my remarks, I often contextualize it to my Marine Corps career because so much of what I’ve seen in your public service, I see in my fellow Marines’ sense of duty to your community, the sense of duty to other people, giving them their self not only herein Concord Township.
Williams continued saying, “You are the leader while being empathetic. You are concerned while being strong and the thing that I most admire about you is that you have to earn your trust and your loyalty. And then once we have your loyalty, your fierce and that you become our lioness. And I want to say from the bottom of my heart, thank you for being our lioness in Concord Township.”
He then read a citation from the state House of Representatives, which mentioned her graduation from Wilmington University with a bachelor’s degree in business management and how she went from an entry-level position at Goodwill of Delaware and Delaware County in 1991 and rose through the ranks to become the president and CEO.
The citation lists her 26 years of service both in the township government and the county government.
“And now therefore, the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania congratulates Colleen Morrone on her well-deserved retirement and proudly notes for her exemplary record of service and contributions in keeping with the highest ideals of this commonwealth, offers her best wishes for the continuation of her many worthwhile and beneficial endeavors.”
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
