Hibernians Division 6 presents new award

The award will give posthumous recognition of humanitarian efforts.
YOUNGSTOWN -- Ancient Order of Hibernians, Joseph P. Nalley Division 6, Mahoning County, has created the annual Monsignor Thomas F. Kelly Humanitarian Award.
Recipients will be deceased Irish Catholic men who were never named the AOH Man of the Year for their contributions to their church, community and Irish heritage.
First honored
During a luncheon held March 17 at St. Patrick Church, the first of the awards honored the achievements of the late Donald E. Foley Sr. and John C. Cox.
Foley, who died July 26, 2005, and his wife, the former Jeanne McLaughlin, had eight children.
He served as chairman of the Immediate Action Program and on the building and finance committees at St. Edward Church. He served as the first president of Ursuline Booster Club, and was the recipient of the Ursuline Principal's Award and the Ursuline Distinguished Alumnus Award.
For 20 years, he served as chairman of the Ursuline Golf Outing, which benefited the school's scholarship fund, and he was also founder and co-chairman of the William G. Lyden Jr. Golf Outing, benefiting the school and YSU. In the late 1980s, the Foleys established the Don and Jeanne Foley Scholarship at YSU for Ursuline graduates.
He was a founder and first elected president of Mahoning Valley Gaelic Society, and served on the boards of American Lung Association, American Red Cross, Better Business Bureau, Catholic Charities, Ursuline Development Foundation, Parkview Counseling and Mill Creek Community Development Center. He also served as president of Goodwill Industries, North Side Citizens Coalition and YSU Penquin Club, and was a member of Downtown Rotary, Mahoning Valley Historical Society and the Irish American Archival Society.
Foley served on the academic/athletic committee at YSU and was a member of the board of trustees for the YSU Foundation.
In 1990 he was named the Youngstown Area Chamber of Commerce "Small Business Person of the Year." He owned Foley Medical Inc. and Family Home Medical until retiring in 2000.
Cox was born May 1943 and grew up on Youngstown's South Side. He graduated from St. Patrick School and Cardinal Mooney High School.
He married the former Melanie Esposito in 1964. There are three children and three grandchildren completing their family.
From 1980 to 1990, Cox operated Celtic Steel, a service center for the steel industry. After the sale of the firm, he was elected to the board of trustees for Boardman Township and served in that capacity for 12 years. Through his role in politics, Cox worked to help residents achieve a better lifestyle.
He died Aug. 18, 2005.