Art Rooney Awards Dinner and Auction held online
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The 47th annual Art Rooney Awards Dinner and Auction has gone virtual.
Like so many nonprofits, the event could not be held live because of the pandemic. Organizers compiled a video with messages from the honorees, along with showcasing the football jerseys, golf packages, spa certificates and hotel stays that guests can bid on. The auction ends at 8 p.m on. Sept. 30.
The dinner is the biggest fundraiser for the Catholic Youth Association, an organization in Lawrenceville that cares for elderly and children. It usually draws more than 600 attendees and was planned for June 8.
“My grandfather was instrumental in starting the dinner, and it’s great to see it’s been going on so long,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in the video. “We are proud to be part of it.”
Jerry MacCleary, the retired chairman and CEO at Covestro, received The Art Rooney award.
“WOW,” said MacCleary, who grew up in Bethel Park and lives in Peters. “I am a Pittsburgher and a huge Steelers fan so to receive an award named for an icon like Mr. Rooney, I had to take a step back. This is big. I am humbled and honored. It doesn’t get any better than this.”
MacCleary spent his 40-year professional life at Mobay Chemical Co., Miles and then Bayer before it became Covestro. He’s involved with the Advanced Leadership Initiative, which prepares African Americans for executive advancement, Imani Christian Academy and the Children’s Hospital Foundation.
“It’s all about making a difference,” he said. “It’s about respect and dignity and about everyone having a voice and being heard.”
Dr. Jean Tersak, a pediatric oncologist at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh in Lawrenceville, where she grew up, is The Patricia R. Rooney award recipient. Rabbi Hazzan Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill received The John E. McGrady award.
He said on the video: “The massacre at Tree of Life came with a message that we must do better. We cannot just think that all people are created equal. It must course through our veins. We need to do all that we can.”
The Bob Prince award was presented to Steelers offensive lineman Alejandro Villanueva. Steelers radio broadcasters Tunch Ilkin and Craig Wolfley, who both played for the Steelers, received The Bill Burns award. The Nick Cardello Volunteer Award was presented to Loretta Thomas from the West Deer Senior Center.