The Anthracite District of Boy Scouts of America announced today that CAN DO President W. Kevin O’Donnell has been chosen as the group’s 2014 Distinguished Citizen of the Year.

O’Donnell will be honored at the annual Hazleton Area Friends of Scouting Dinner on May 8. He will be recognized by Scouts, friends, family, business and community leaders for his achievements and service to the community and the area’s youth.

The Distinguished Citizen Award recognizes individuals who set a positive example for others and demonstrate selfless concern and care for their communities.

O’Donnell has been with CAN DO since 1973, when he was hired as assistant director. In 1984, he was named to the position of director, a title that in 1995 was changed to president.

He is post leader for the newly established Boy Scouts Explorer Post 924, which formed at CAN DO to assist area youth explore job opportunities in the Hazleton area. He also served as treasurer for Cub Scout Pack 63 in St. Johns. As a youth, O’Donnell was a member of Cub Scout Pack 63, Boy Scout Troop 63 and the Hazleton Civil Air Patrol.

O’Donnell has also been active in many other community organizations as a volunteer, including board memberships and offices held with the Greater Hazleton Jaycees, Hazleton YM/YWCA, Pathway to Recovery (formerly Serento Gardens), Cranberry Creek Gateway Park board, MMI Preparatory School board, Hazleton Rotary Club, Hazleton POWER and the Greater Hazleton Civic Partnership Advisory Board. He served as a volunteer worker during the formation of Eckley Miners Village, on the steering committee for Partners In Education and on the Business Hall of Fame selection committee for Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania.  O’Donnell is a founding member of the Alice C. Wiltsie Center for the Performing Arts and founding board member and secretary/treasurer of the Hazleton Community Recreational Swim Association.

He previously coached Little League baseball and Valley girls’ softball and was an assistant coach for CVCO basketball.

O’Donnell is one of the incorporators of the CAN DO Community Foundation and a founder of the Community Association for New Business Entrepreneurship (CAN BE) and its Greater Hazleton Business Innovation Center.

He serves on the boards of NEPA Alliance, Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center, Penn’s Northeast (past chairman), Greater Hazleton Chamber of Commerce, Ben Franklin Technology Partners of NEPA Advisory Board, Pennsylvania Technical Assistance Program (PennTAP) Advisory Board, Downtown Hazleton Alliance for Progress, Luzerne/Schuylkill Workforce Investment Board, Northeast Pennsylvania Manufacturers and Employers Association, the NEPA Institute for Public Policy & Economic Development (Infrastructure Task Force), Pennsylvania Economic Development Association, International Economic Development Association, Industrial Asset Management Council and the National Business Incubator Association. He was the secretary/treasurer for the New York/Pennsylvania Shippers Association and is a co-founder of the Great Valley Technology Alliance, now known as TecBridge. He has served as a Team Pennsylvania ambassador and is a frequent presenter for Leadership Hazleton and numerous other groups.

In 1984, O’Donnell was recognized by his peers as the first-ever “Developer of the Year” as selected by the Pennsylvania Economic Development Association (PEDA), and in 2006, he was awarded the Ben Franklin Innovation Award “Special Achievement” for his contribution to the creation of the Great Valley Technology Alliance (GVTA). In 2009, he was inducted into Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s Business Hall of Fame for his numerous achievements and contributions to Greater Hazleton and Northeastern Pennsylvania.

O’Donnell holds a Bachelor of Science degree in technical management and an associate’s degree in architecture.

O’Donnell and his wife, Maureen, have three children, Ryan, Courtney and Erin. They also have two grandchildren. He is a member of Good Shepherd Church.

Supporting a youth in scouting costs about $270 per year. Many Scouts rely on donations to help defray their costs. The public can make a difference in the lives of today’s youth by attending the dinner or making a donation that will support one or more Scouts for 2014.

Contribution can be mailed to Minsi Trails Council, BSA, C/O Greater Hazleton Friends of Scouting Dinner, 21 N. Church St., Hazleton, PA 18201.

For more information on the Greater Hazleton Area Friends of Scouting Dinner, contact Lisa Finkelstein, Minsi Trails district executive, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The Anthracite District of Minsi Trails Council provides leadership and character development programs to more than 700 youth with 230 adult volunteers. The district serves young people throughout White Haven, Weatherly, Freeland, Beaver Meadows, West Hazleton, Hazleton, Hazle Township, McAdoo, Nuremberg, Conyngham and Drums. To learn more about Scouting in the Hazleton area, visit www.minsitrails.com or to find a nearby unit, visit www.BeAScout.org.

Minsi Trails Council provides leadership and character development programs to nearly 11,000 youth with 5,000 adult volunteers. The council serves young people throughout Greater Hazleton, the Pocono Mountains and the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania along with western New Jersey and serves six counties: Lehigh, Northampton, Monroe, Carbon, Luzerne and Wayne counties.

The Boy Scouts of America is the nation’s foremost youth program focused on character development and leadership training. The Scouting organization is composed of 2.7 million youth members between the ages of 7 and 20, 1.1 million volunteers, and nearly 300 local councils throughout the United States and its territories.