for Dimensions in Philanthropy
W
hen people in the Monongahela
Valley region hear the names Toni
and Archie Allridge, groceries may
come to mind. It’s only natural
because they serve as the president and vice president
respectively of Mon Valley Foods. Their company
employs approximately 380 people at its Giant Eagle
stores in Finleyville, Fisher Heights and Uniontown.
While their stores are a major source of the Valley’s
nutritional needs, the Allridges help fuel the
community’s educational, medical, recreational and
Toni and Robert “Archie” Allridge
spiritual needs through their philanthropic efforts.
For their commitment to the community, the
Allridges are the recipients of the 2017 Rose Award for Dimensions in Philanthropy.
Toni and Archie are compelled to give back to the community by providing their time and
resources to help strengthen the quality of life in the region. Their philanthropic efforts
encompass many areas; however, realizing the impact that today’s youth plays on the future of
the region, their focus includes programs that benefit children and adolescents. In addition,
ensuring that the community has high-quality health care available, Archie helps to provide
direction and support to Monongahela Valley Hospital and its affiliates by serving on the
Board of Mon-Vale Health Resources, Inc.
The Allridges have called the Mon Valley Community their home for their entire lives.
Strong work ethics and dedication are two of many values instilled in both Archie and Toni
by their parents John and Darlene Allridge and Aldo and Joan Bartolotta. Archie and Toni met
in their teens shortly after he graduated from Ringgold High School and while she was still a
student at Mon Valley Catholic. While Toni has been involved in the grocery business since
birth, Archie has been in the business for 46 years. He began his career as a meat cutter at a
small shop in Monongahela and joined Mon Valley Foods in 1981. Married for 39 years, they
have raised a daughter, Jennifer Fitzgerald who lives with her husband, Jamie, and daughters,
Claire and Charlotte, in Washington, D.C. Their son, Bart, remains in the area and works in
the three Giant Eagle stores.
The Rose Award for
Dimensions in
Philanthropy was created
to honor the late
Mrs. Rose Sweeney
Melenyzer, a longtime
friend and benefactor
to Mon-Vale Health
Resources, Inc.
This award recognizes
members of our
community for their
benevolence and
dedication to the
enhancement of quality
health care.
for Dimensions in Medicine
T
here is a room in the Belle Vernon office
L. Douglas Pepper, M.D., occupies with his
daughter, M. Elizabeth Pepper, M.D., that is filled
with memorabilia that bears the name they share
with a brand of soft drink. The space conveys the same
atmosphere of warmth that is felt when you enter one of the
patient rooms. Each room includes a computer that is
contrasted by the antique exam tables and cabinets which were
given to Dr. Pepper by local physicians when they retired.
Although he never practiced with those doctors, each of the
retiring physicians saw the qualities in Dr. Pepper that have
made him a favorite physician and friend to the families in the
L. Douglas Pepper, M.D.
Mon Valley region who have been going to him for medical
care since the early-1980s.
For the high-level of care he provides to patients and his leadership to Monongahela Valley
Hospital, Dr. Pepper is the recipient of the 2017 Sickman-Levin Award for Dimensions in
Medicine. While his interest in medicine developed in the 10th grade when Mr. Trozzi, his biology
teacher, suggested a career in medicine, his skill for helping people can actually be traced back to
when at 5 years-of-age he decided kindergarten was not right for him. The young Doug Pepper
found it more rewarding to visit shut-ins three days a week with his mother and younger sister
where they sang hymns, recited poetry and scripture and overall lit up the lives of those they visited.
Dr. Pepper graduated from Washington and Jefferson College; and, earned his medical degree at
Jefferson Medical College, where he met the love of his life, his wife Maria. Upon completion of his
residency at McKeesport Hospital, he began practicing in McKeesport. In 1978 with his father’s
encouragement, Dr. Pepper moved his practice to Belle Vernon which was closer to Centerville, Pa.
where he was raised. He began his MVH affiliation in 1983.
During the past 34 years, MVH has been very privileged to have Dr. Pepper on staff. He was
elected to serve as vice president of the Medical Staff Executive Committee in 2012 and became the
president in 2016. Dr. Pepper is committed to providing his patients the highest standard of care,
delivered with compassion and integrity. He considers himself blessed to have one of the finest
community hospitals in America to be only 12 minutes from his office. He is honored to serve
as president of the Hospital’s medical staff. In that position, Dr. Pepper provides leadership and
direction to MVH’s 225 physicians and surgeons and is a liaison between the medical staff and
the Hospital’s board of trustees. As a family physician and active board member since 1983, he
has witnessed firsthand the high-quality physicians who provide care at MVH. Dr. Pepper also has
closely observed how effectively the Hospital’s leadership and physicians work together with the
common goal of providing the high-standard of care that the community expects from MVH.
When Dr. Pepper lists his priorities they include his relationship with God, his family and his
patients. He and Maria raised two daughters and a son — M. Elizabeth, J. Paul and Rachel.
They are doting grandparents of Daniel, Jack and Journey (J.P.).
The Sickman-Levin Award
was created to honor two physicians,
Albert S. Sickman and
Herbert J. Levin, for their many
outstanding contributions
to health care in the
mid-Monongahela Valley.
for Dimensions in Community Service
W
ashington County is a great place to live,
work and play largely due to the leadership
and vision of the Board of Commissioners
— Larry Maggi, Diana Irey Vaughan and
Harlan G. Shober Jr. For the past five years, these elected
leaders have worked together as a cohesive team to lead
economic development, generate growth and protect the
environment. For their dedication to the community, the
Washington County Commissioners are the recipients of
Monongahela Valley Hospital’s 2017 Gibbons Award for
Dimensions in Community Service.
Although they come from diverse backgrounds, the three
Harlan G. Shober Jr., Diana Irey
commissioners share common traits that have enabled them
Vaughan and Larry Maggi
to act in the best interest of taxpayers, preserve rural areas,
increase the population and maintain the County’s country
charm while attracting new businesses. When asked individually about their secrets to success, each
commissioner echoed the sentiments of the others. They described a mutual respect that has grown into a
friendship. In addition, they emphasized respect, informal and formal communication, compassion,
admiration and compromise. Each commissioner maintains that they are great complements to each other.
Commissioner Maggi, who is the chairman of the Board of Commissioners, is serving his fourth term.
He was born, raised, educated and worked most of his life in Washington County. His political service to
Washington County began in 1997 when he was elected sheriff. Prior to Commissioner Maggi’s elected
law enforcement role, he served for 24 years as a Pennsylvania state trooper — the last 10 years of his state
police career as a criminal investigator in Washington, Pa. He is a former Marine corporal who is
passionate about helping Washington County veterans. Commissioner Maggi is considered “the ultimate
gentleman” by his fellow commissioners. He often stands at attention in full military uniform during the
funerals of Washington County veterans to give them the honors they deserve.
Commissioner Irey Vaughan is the youngest person, only woman and longest tenured Washington
County Commissioner. Elected to her sixth term in 2015, she is now serving her 22nd year on the Board.
Commissioner Irey Vaughan draws on her background in finance to help the Board keep taxes low, balance
the budget during challenging times and attract new businesses. She recognizes the crucial role of county
government in providing guidance, support and solutions to the underserved population — particularly
child victims and female offenders in the Washington County Jail. For the past three years, she has been
volunteering at the Washington County Correctional Facility working with female inmates in a re-entry
program. In this role she helps the women to prepare for life. In 2012, she started the Washington County
Children and Youth Task Force to assemble professionals who serve youth in an effort to improve the
delivery of services. Her work in these areas is focused on reducing recidivism in conjunction with
dependency issues in the community.
Commissioner Shober brings a combination of extensive business and entrepreneurial experience as well
as decades of elected community leadership to the Washington County community. He draws on his
experience in property development to entice businesses to relocate in the County. While Commissioner
Shober strives to help maintain a balance between rural, residential and commercial areas, he is passionate
about maintaining a high-quality of life for all residents. Serving his second term, one of his chief priorities
is to use the County’s vast natural resources to create jobs that will keep the younger generation in the
community while providing a source of income for older residents. Commissioner Shober’s leadership
stretches beyond the borders of the County. In 2016, he was elected president of the County
Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania.
The Gibbons Award for Dimensions in Community Service was established to honor the
late Eugene Gibbons whose legacy to the commitment of health care spanned 55 years as an officer
and member of the Mon-Vale Health Resources Board. This award is given to those who are dedicated
to the health, social and civic needs of area residents and help to improve the quality of life.
for Dimensions in Volunteer Service
W
hen asked what she does, Ruth
Antonelli, the 2017 recipient of the
Rossomme Award for Dimensions in
Volunteer Service, may reply that she
is the president of the Auxiliary of Mon-Vale Health
Resources, Inc. Yes, that’s true, but what Ruth really does
is she takes care of people. After spending many years
raising her family of five sons and two daughters in
Barbour County, WV, Ruth returned to her hometown
of Belle Vernon in 2005 to be closer to her siblings who
were receiving care at Monongahela Valley Hosptial. It
was during her visits to MVH that Ruth saw how the
Ruth Antonelli
Auxilians interacted with patients, hospital staff and the
public. As a frequent visitor, she often talked with the Auxilians; and, when she was approached
to join the organization in 2007, she eagerly became a member. Ruth felt at home at MVH
because she was a nurse who previously enjoyed a fulfilling career providing skilled and acute
care to patients. She spent many years caring for people and their loved ones in the Emergency
Room of the West Virginia hospital where she worked.
When Ruth first joined the Auxiliary, she performed any service patients and visitors needed
from taking the gift cart to the units to operating the elevators. It wasn’t long before she was asked
to serve as the group’s historian. In 2008, she was chosen as the vice president, an office Ruth
accepted with apprehension since she had no prior experience as a leader in an elected office.
With help and guidance from many members of the Auxiliary, Ruth enjoyed serving as the vice
president and went on to become president. She was sworn in for her first two-year term at the
Auxiliary’s 32nd Annual Appreciation Dinner in June 2010. Ruth was elected to her second
two-year term in 2012.
During her first two terms, she led the Auxiliary as the organization generously participated
in the Hospital’s $25 million Capital Campaign with a $100,000 pledge. During Ruth’s terms,
the Auxiliary raised $315,000 for MVH which was used to purchase digital mammography
equipment for HealthPLEX Imaging; integrated vital sign machines which take the patients’ blood
pressure and pulse with greater accuracy and efficiency, and transfer the vitals into the patients’
electronic records; recliners for patient rooms on 7-East, the ICU and CCU; televisions for the
Emergency Department treatment rooms; and chairs for Behavioral Health patient rooms. Ruth
was elected to her third term as president at the group’s 38th Annual Dinner in June 2016. She is
a popular leader among Auxilians and the MVH staff because she is always looking out for the
wellbeing of the Auxilians — she is very protective of the ladies. In addition, Ruth is a
forward thinking person who always seeks new and better ways to recruit members,
support hospital programs and raise funds. She is proudly joined at the Gala by her
two daughters who traveled distances to attend. Kelly is visiting from Morgan
Hill, California and Amy from Buckhannon, West Virginia.
The Rossomme Award for Dimensions in Volunteer
Service was established to honor the memory of
Florence S. Rossomme. A dedicated volunteer,
Mrs. Rossomme served in many leadership roles as a member
of the Auxiliary of Mon-Vale Health Resources, Inc. and
one of its predecessor organizations — the Auxiliary of
Charleroi-Monessen Hospital where her volunteer service began
in 1943. This award recognizes people who tirelessly give of their
time and talents in volunteer service to the health system.