Lower Merion & Narberth PATV Board of Directors

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Board of Directors - Bios

Perrin ‘Perry’ C. Hamilton - Jr., Chairman

(Sales & Administration – McIlvain Co.)

Born in Penn Wynne, PA, Perry attended Lower Merion public schools until high school where he graduated from the Haverford School in 1970.  While at college at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, PA, Perry became chairman of the University Concert Committee and served as one of the founders of the campus coffee house.

Having graduated from Susquehanna University in 1974, Perry returned to Lower Merion in the employment of the Industrial Valley Bank where he worked in credit management and loan collections.  After a brief but fruitful employment with the AMC-Jeep Corp. as a factory service and sales rep for dealers, Hamilton then joined the Alan McIlvain Co. as a territorial representative for sales, and credit risk management where he has been working for twenty nine years.  Among his affiliations with business organizations, Hamilton has served as a Board member and vice President of the Washington DC chapter of the International Order of the Hoo Hoo, an international organization of forest products professionals and also served as a charter member of the board of an organization of credit managers in the Washington, DC area.

As a life long member of All Saints’ Church in Wynnewood, Perry served several terms on the church vestry and has been a lay reader there for many years.

When living in Narberth, PA, from 1978 to 1986, Hamilton and his wife joined N.I.C.E. and the Board of the Narberth Civic Association.  Among his greatest pleasures was running the annual Memorial Day Parade in Narberth for several years.  After moving to Wynnewood, Hamilton served on the board of the Wynnewood Civic Association from 1989 to 1991.  Perry rejoined the board of the Wynnewood Civic Association in 2003 and was honored to serve as President from 2003 to 2006. 

As a lifelong Republican, Perry was happy to add to his neighborhood activities by becoming the Republican Party committeeman for Ward 5-1.

Hamilton has been an active member of the Men’s’ Garden Club of Philadelphia, the Bachelors’ Barge Club, and has been President of the Stony Lane Swim Club.

Above all else, Perry Hamilton is most appreciative of his wife Betsy Kellogg, two daughters, Sarah and Victoria, and their son, Perrin.

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Irene McNeil - Founder, President, & CEO

(Community Volunteer)

Irene McNeil has over 20 years experience in planning, developing and implementing communications activities and media relations programs to maintain awareness of the role of government, business, and non-profit corporations.

From 1981 to 1987, she was Chief of Public Relations for the Government of Canada to promote its role in Quebec in particular Economic Development. She organized over 500 news conferences and special events. She managed a team of bilingual writers and contractors for speeches, news releases, literature, and signage to inform the media, all levels of government, and the community. She briefed government officials on English and French media affairs and traveled with elected officials throughout the Quebec regions to announce government initiatives.

In 1980 and 1981, she was Deputy Director of Public Relations for the Canadian Red Cross. She developed and maintained awareness of the Red Cross and ensured success of annual financial campaigns.  She acted as spokesperson for the Red Cross and participated in radio and television public affairs television programs. She also was guest speaker at many conferences sponsored by regional and local community organizations promoting the Red Cross.

From 1977 to 1980 she was Public Relations Manager for the Quebec Construction Federation that groups 16 regional construction associations with a combined membership of over 4,000 construction firms.  She counseled local construction associations on public relations and information matters. She organized press conferences and conventions. She worked closely with advertising agencies to publish consumer literature on construction matters and created and published a monthly newspaper for Federation members.

From 1974 to 1977 she worked as a journalist in written and electronic media about current events in Quebec City. She also produced several television news segments with Quebec Parliament elected officials.

Throughout the 70’s and 80’s McNeil was active as a volunteer in several organizations including the Quebec Symphony Orchestra (Chaired Advertising), the Quebec winter Carnival (Chaired Media), the Canadian Red Cross (Chaired Advertising), Toastmaster Club (Board Secretary) and Ad and Sales Club (Board Secretary). After moving to the US, she kept active professionally through public speaking engagements about media relations and then through an on-going Alzheimer's caregiving graphic novel project.

McNeil moved to the US in 1987.  She is married to Clarke Glennon who grew up in Narberth and Merion.  They are both retired and living in Lower Merion Township and are active in volunteer organizations related to their professional background and also writing and publishing.

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Joshua Klein - Treasurer

(President - The Rittenhouse Foundation and Bristol Gardens Apartments)

Joshua Klein is President of The Rittenhouse Foundation, a small family foundation started by his grandparents 60 years ago. About $100,000 a year is awarded to non-profits, mostly in arts and education in the Philadelphia region.

His full-time job is as President and manager of Bristol Gardens Inc. in Lower Bucks County. It is a non-profit corporation that has 392 rental apartment units. Klein is a board member of the Bristol Rotary Club.

He entered the real estate world 10 years ago after a 15-year journalism career where he was a reporter for papers that include: The Washington Post, Journal Newspapers of Northern Virginia; Philadelphia Inquirer and The Trentonian. He then became an editor for Gannett running the newsroom at its Vineland and Millville papers. At the Inquirer, he spent three years working in the Main Line Neighbors section office.

He grew up in Center City and graduated from Friends' Central School in 1980. He received a degree in Print Journalism from American University in Washington, D.C. in 1984. In college, he was the photo editor of the school paper and chairman of the media commission, which oversaw the operation of the newspaper, radio and television stations and yearbook.

Klein has served on the boards of the Philadelphia Art Alliance and the Corporate Partners Board of the Mann Center for Performing Arts. He heads the annual golf tournament for the benefit of the Mann. He is also Chief fiscal officer for the Mikveh Israel Cemetery Trust where his father Arthur was instrumental in bringing about its designation as a historic shrine and making it part of the Independence National Historic Park. For generations, Klein and his family have been and continue to be part of the history and development of many well-known institutions. His grandfather was president of Harcum College for many years and spearheaded its re-development. His family continues to be involved.

Joshua moved to Villanova 10 years ago. He is married to Wendy Koppel-Klein and has two daughters - Marielle (a senior at Ocean City, NJ High School) and Samantha (a fourth-grader at Gladwyne Elementary). They are members of the Har Zion Temple of Penn Valley as well as Beth Zion-Beth Israel in Philadelphia.

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Loraine Carter, Chair - Programming Development and Scheduling

(President – Concerned Black Parents)

Although Loraine Carter relocated to the Lower Merion community in 2002 when her husband took a position with WPHL-TV, her active involvement with the community has become recognized as a staple of our neighborhoods.

Carter is the co-president of Concerned Black Parents, a parent-led organization of folks from all walks of life, ethnic and racial backgrounds who are passionate about closing the prevalent academic achievement gaps facing Lower Merion’s African American, Hispanic, low-income and learning disabled students. CBP’s documentary, The Main Line Education Monologues: Dreams Deferred or Realized, used the visual arts to outreach to the entire Main Line community to increase awareness of the persistent poor academic outcomes for Blacks in a school district highly esteemed as world-class, high achieving, and blue-ribbon award winning.  CBP sponsors numerous parent forums, workshops and seminars to enable them to advocate for their children in areas ranging from academic tracking, to understanding the No Child Left Behind law’s focus on academic standards, assessments, accountability, and to special education.

One of the greatest points of pride for all CBP members occurred during Main Line weekend long visit by a most extraordinary educator, Marva Collins. Collins has received innumerable awards of honor and recognition for educating children to high levels of excellence and academic achievement; even children the public school system identified as uneducable or as hailing from “dysfunctional families.” Collins proved to CBP members that reversing underachievement is absolutely achievable, even in short-order time.  Reversing this trend takes the willful determination of school leaders, teachers, parents and the students.   Collins publicly introduced Lower Merion’s second through fifth grade students to Shakespeare’s King Richard III to demonstrate what is possible, even to the most diehard unbeliever.  She admits one of the greatest challenges facing public schools today is that, “teachers can’t teach what they don’t know.”  When you witness a Master Educator like Marva Collins educate children, you realize what it takes to expel underachievement, disengagement, and misbehavior in a classroom where there is no room for low expectation or failure.  Given what is possible for all children, CBP stands firm in its charge to unite the Lower Merion community to collectively address the issue of raising academic achievement, success, and equity for all of its children.

Loraine Carter is member of the Lower Merion School District’s Committee to Address Race in Education (CARE), a former board member of the Committee for Special Education, another parent-led organization that focuses on advocating for both gifted and special education students within the district, and an assistant Girl Scout leader of Troop 24.  Carter serves as a founding and executive member of COMPAS, the Coalition of Organized and Mobilized Parents for Academic Success, a collection of African American community grassroots groups from the greater eastern Pennsylvania region that focus on closing the achievement gap and raising achievement for students. She is the proud wife of Charles and mother of Leah, Christopher and Jacquianna.

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Karen Ash

(Community Volunteer)

Karen Ash is active in several volunteer organizations and is the elected Republican Committee woman for Ward9-3 in Lower Merion Township.

Ash is the Finance Chair of the Republican Committee of Lower Merion and Narberth. She has participated in many fundraising events, for National, state and local election campaigns.  She is currently a member of the development committee for the Montgomery Child Advocacy Project (MCAP). She served recently as a member of the Lower Merion Tax Study Commission. She is an active member of St. Matthias Parish.

Ash is the Aid for Friends General Food Coordinator, an ecumenical outreach program that serves the elderly shut-ins in the tri-county area. She also volunteers for HOPE by providing services to senior parishioners.

At St. Margaret School in Narberth, she has participated in fundraising as solicitor in the annual Blue Fest Auction and Dinner. She currently works with the J. Camiel Fundraising firm. She resides in Bala Cynwyd with her husband Bill and their five children. Her husband is a general building contractor in Lower Merion. She is co-owner of B.A.C.B. Construction.

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Phyllis Faber Kelley

(Community Volunteer)

Phyllis Faber Kelley has been supportive of Public Access since the news broke, back in early 2005, of the community effort to activate the channel. She has been active in local organizations and understands the importance of community television as the voice of non-profits.

Phyllis first became active in Lower Merion Township’s community about 15 years ago when she was selected to serve as a Trustee of the Bala Cynwyd Library, second-largest library in the Township Library System. She oversaw the establishment of an electronic database of cardholders and donors.

Phyllis then became active with Bala Cynwyd’s civic association, The Neighborhood Club, serving as chair of its prize-winning Beautification Committee, as a Director, and as President.  She now holds the position of Immediate Past President, and serves as editor of the organization’s newsletter, The Gateway. She also chairs the Nominating Committee.

In 2004, Phyllis completed the Barnes Foundation Arboretum School’s three-year program leading to a Certificate in Horticulture.  That same year, she was named to the Township’s Shade Tree Commission, an organization in which she is still active.

Phyllis’ academic background is in math, engineering and computer science.  She retired from Lockheed Martin Corporation in 1998, is the mother of four sons, and grandmother of Sara and Lucy. She and her husband, Steve Rosasco, live in Bala Cynwyd.

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Coy Purcell - Recording Secretary

(Associate Director, Office of Research Services, University of Pennsylvania)

Coy Purcell is a corporate and health law attorney employed by the University of Pennsylvania. Coy's work at the University of Pennsylvania is focused on negotiation of contracts in the areas of clinical trial agreements and sponsored research agreements.

Coy graduated from George Washington University and the University of Virginia School of Law, and has practiced law in the Philadelphia area since 1980. Coy started his legal career in litigation with the law firm of White and Williams, before moving to corporate law. A former General Counsel for an international corporation, Coy's legal career has included practice with law firms, corporations, and most recently with the academic institutions, Thomas Jefferson University and University of Pennsylvania.

Coy enjoys running and cycling with his wife, Nancy, and competing in triathlons. Coy and Nancy have been residents of Narberth for over twenty years. They both support Dance Affiliates, a nonprofit organization that brings the contemporary dance series "Dance Celebration" to Penn's Annenberg Center theater each season.

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