By Max Colecchi, Disability Options Network board member and Western Pennsylvania Disability History and Action Consortium executive committee member
The Magic of Marlene
Marlene O’Leary, age 64, passed away peacefully on November 10, 2024. She was a loving wife, mother, and grandmother to her family. She was also a beloved co-worker and supervisor to everyone she worked with.
Marlene had an extensive career in human services in Western Pennsylvania. Her work experience included being an administrator at Catholic Charities from November 2016 to February 2018, a service coordinator at Allegheny Link from July 2018 to June 2020, and the PA Lead Link Coordinator at PA Link and CLASS from July 2020 to July 2022. Most recently, she was the director at Disability Options Network, the Center for Independent Living (CIL) for seven southwestern Pennsylvania counties, including her home county of Allegheny County from August 2022 to the day she passed.
Marlene made an impact on every soul she came across, having had the “gift of gab.” Let’s hear from some of those souls she touched:
- “Marlene O’Leary was an inspiration to those working in the helping field. Her mentoring of fellow staff as well as participants under her guidance exceeded my expectations. Marlene’s positive attitude was contagious! Marlene will truly be missed,” said Peggy Reid.
- “She was highly respected and deeply loved by her staff. She was our supervisor, the CIL director, but she was also one of the girls. Her smile lit up the room, and she loved being silly. If problems arose with either consumers or staff, she handled the situation with grace — she was firm when she had to be, but you could tell that she cared,” said Amy Hawkins.
- “I will always remember Marlene for being a caring and compassionate leader, her sense of humor and quick wit, her song of the day, the nicknames she gave people, and her dedication to help others,” said Rebekah Criss.
- One last quote from Barbara Grossman: “Marlene was the lighthouse of the CIL. There was no caller situation that she wasn’t able to assist with if we got caught in a jam. When I think of Marlene, there is one word resounding in my heart: THANK YOU. She was a presence in our department keeping our spirits up with the daily song! She often called me ‘Wendy’ and I always answered to it.”
It has been said that you can get a feeling about a person from what others have to say about them and in Marlene’s case those words could not be truer. The Western Pennsylvania disability community lost a great leader but, more importantly, a friend.
