Chester County History Center Elects Gawthrop Greenwood Attorney Patrick McKenna to Board of Trustees

Gawthrop Greenwood attorney and partner Patrick M. McKenna has been elected to the board of trustees for the Chester County History Center, a nonprofit historical society founded in 1893 and dedicated to collecting, preserving and exhibiting the story of Chester County, Pennsylvania.

CCHC trustees voted last week to add McKenna to their 18-member board led by chair Holly Stoviak. Conor Hepp, President of the Chester County History Center, said, “In addition to being a partner at one of Chester County’s most historic law firms, Patrick is a well-known and active part of our community with a profound appreciation of our history. His perspective will be valuable, and it means so much to have him join us.”

McKenna said, “Truth be told, I’m a history nerd at heart, and it’s an honor to serve one of the most highly regarded American history museums in Pennsylvania. The next 18 months are a particularly exciting time for CCHC, as it works to increase access to museum artifacts and historic photographs through a newly grant-funded digital initiative.”

A resident of Chester County for more than 40 years, McKenna is a well-known solicitor for townships, municipal authorities and other public entities, focusing his law practice in Municipal Government, Zoning, and Land Use and Land Development.

He recently completed his term as the youngest chair of the management committee in Gawthrop Greenwood’s 119-year history after heading the firm’s Government & Education Law Department, which has grown into one of the most successful in Chester County.

McKenna recently served as President of the Chester County Bar Association and President of the Chester County Bar Foundation. He has been a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association since 2004, where he currently sits as a Zone 9 Delegate At-Large to the P.B.A. House of Delegates. In addition, McKenna was elected as Chair of the P.B.A. Municipal Law Section Council. He is a Member of the Solicitor Section of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors.

McKenna is a board member for the Franklin Mint Federal Credit Union. He is also a past President of the Board of Directors of Safe Harbor of Chester County, Inc., a shelter for single homeless men and women in Chester County.