Daniel Deaver 1W5, Aerial Line Supervisor at PECO, received Williamson’s Board of Trustees’ Clarence W. Schrenk 4W9 Young Alumnus Award during the Founder’s Day celebration on Feb. 6 in the Clara Schrenk Memorial Chapel.
The award is presented to an alumnus who graduated within the last 15 years and who has distinguished himself by making substantial contributions to his profession and to society at an early stage in his life.
Deaver grew up in Aston, Pa., and graduated from Garnet Valley High School where he took many vocational courses. He became interested in Williamson after learning of the school’s core values, structure, and discipline and enrolled in the Machine Tool Technology program.
An active student, he served as the student newspaper editor and was in the Archery and Tutoring Clubs. While a senior, he was inducted into the prestigious IV Club. As a junior, he went on the Junior Leadership Excursion (JLE) at a time when only the two top students in each trade program were selected to participate and he also went on a service trip to El Salvador.
He says when he came to Williamson he was lost, but by the time he graduated he had found his direction. He says he got that direction from the core values, the structure, and the religious training. He especially credits Williamson’s chaplain, Rev. Dr. Mark Specht 7W7, and the late Carmen Martella, the head of the Machine Tool Technology program at that time. He said, “They turned me into a man during my time there. If it wasn’t for them and my Williamson education I don’t know where I’d be now, where I’d be working, where I’d be in life. Everyone there helped, but especially those two.”
After graduating, he worked in the machine shop at Exelon Generation Industrial Services in Baltimore, Md. He then went to PECO as a machinist, and later became a Distribution System Operator, a Senior Distribution System Operator, and then his current position of Aerial Line Supervisor. He also is a Community Connector at PECO, helping to put on various volunteer events and has helped obtain several PECO Community Grants for Williamson.
Since graduating, he has been an active alumnus going on a Williamson service trip to Lima, Peru, and several years providing financial support for students to go. For three years he has been in the Alumni Mentoring Program, helping students with resumes, interview preparation, and sharing career advice, and has served as an alumni leader on JLE trips. He also is a loyal Williamson Fund donor.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in business and organizational leadership at Neumann University and an MBA at Western Governors University. While at Neumann, he was inducted into the National Honor Society. He married Ally, his high school sweetheart in 2023 and stresses that she played a large role in his getting through Williamson and succeeding in his career.
