Living the Message
Honoring those who show Respect, Dignity, Hope and Love
Respect
Dignity
Brian Dinkfelt remembers the first time he was called
upon to play Taps for the LaRosa Boys and Girls Club's Veterans
Day ceremony, which honors club members who were killed in
action while serving in Vietnam. It was November 11, 1995. Brian
was in the eighth grade, and he was learning to play the trumpet
in school. "It was my first time at the club, and I saw what a great
program this was for our community," he said. "I met Sam LaRosa
for the first time, and he told me what it meant to him to have
this program twice a year for the families affected by this loss and
for our community." Dinkfelt has played Taps every year for the
club and has filled in at City-sponsored ceremonies when current
students were not available - most recently on Veterans Day of this
year. He enjoys participating in veterans programming because
he feels it's a proper "thank you" to those who have served. "You
can't thank them enough for what they've done for our country,"
Dinkfelt said. "You don't realize the toll their service takes on them
until you sit down and talk to them about their lives. The same
can be said for our police officers today. They need thanks and
recognition, and they need our respect." Dinkfelt developed his
sense of respect and community service as a member of the Boy
Scouts of America in his youth. He spent a lot of time helping at
the American Legion post in White Oak, and particularly enjoyed
preparing for that borough's Memorial Day parade. Today, Dinkfelt
is employed as a code enforcement officer in White Oak. His
background is in civil engineering, having studied at Penn State
University with a focus on maintenance and construction jobs. In
his free time, he enjoys hockey and baseball.
Living the Message
The McKeesport Message Committee, a subgroup of McKeesport Mayor Michael
Cherepko’s Select Committee on Crime and Violence, invites the public to nominate
community members who exemplify the words, “Respect, Dignity, Hope and Love.”
20
MCKEESPORT AREA
McKeesport Area High School students know
JoAnne Rodgers as the helpful and friendly nurse who's
always there to help them with their daytime troubles. They also
know her as a mentor, a listening ear, and a positive influence.
What they may not realize is that she is the first African-American
nurse hired in the district in 1971 - having worked with kids from
kindergarten through their senior year since that time. "At the
time when I was growing up, most women were to become a
schoolteacher or a nurse," Rodgers recalled. She studied at the
Freedman's Hospital School of Nursing at Howard University
in Washington, D.C. as well as Penn State University. Before
working in McKeesport's schools, she made house calls to city
neighborhoods and Harrison and Crawford Villages as a public
health nurse with the Allegheny County Health Department. She
remembers visiting patients at their residences and being greeted
by the community: "People would see you carrying a nurse's
bag, and they respected you." Born and raised in McKeesport and
having traveled the globe because of her husband's role in the U.S.
Armed Forces, Rodgers said she'd rather be in McKeesport than
anywhere else in the world. "From Texas to the Island of Crete, or
North Africa to different parts of Europe, I will tell you there's no
place like home," she said. "You enjoy yourself out there, but it's
not like being in the United States. This truly is the best country
in the world." In addition to her weekly work schedule, Rodgers
keeps herself busy with a variety of educational and social
organizations that benefit the McKeesport community. She serves
as corresponding secretary and scholarship committee cochair for
the Semper Fidelis Club of McKeesport and vice president of the
local Altrusa club. She is a member of the McKeesport Regional
History and Heritage Center Board of Directors, McKeesport
College Club, and NAACP McKeesport Unit.
McKeesporters of all ages – from youth volunteers to senior citizens – display
characteristics of Respect, Dignity, Hope and Love on a daily basis in our community.
Whether through organizing community activities or offering a helping hand to
those in need, everyday people are doing their part to make our city a better place. If
we look within our schools, our neighborhoods, our churches and our service