Last week DCA celebrated the best in construction at our 53^rd Annual Dinner meeting. With great attendance at the Chase Center of the Riverfront, our members took the opportunity to gather with their teams, customers, and guests to recognize unique construction projects and the exceptional skill and creativity the Construction Excellence Award winners bring to their work!

The evening was special in some other ways as well. This coming January, after 42 years with DCA, Marla DiSalvo, will be retiring. Beginning her career in 1981, Marla has been a significant part of DCA playing the role it does in the region’s construction economy. Having served five Executive Vice Presidents and 38 DCA Presidents, Marla has seen and been a part of almost everything DCA has done. It was fitting that at her last Annual Dinner meeting as a DCA staff member, she was recognized with the DCA Lifetime Achievement Award! I was particularly pleased that two of my predecessors, John McMahon and John Casey, were able to join me on the stage during Marla’s recognition.

This year’s Dickie Award also went to a very special person but sadly had to be awarded posthumously. We were honored to have Jeff Bross, Verdantas, be a member of DCA for 32 years. For many of those years he volunteered as a Construction Excellence Award judge bringing his intellect and experience to this important process. There were times when I called Jeff seeking help for one of our members. He was always willing to try to help and approached it with his generous demeanor. He was an active member of DCA’s Government Relations Committee for many years and I benefited from his insights when performing our government relations work. We greatly appreciated Jeff’s daughter, Stephanie Muscara, attending the dinner and accepting the award.

As always, the DCA Special Events Committee worked hard to put together a great evening including a Super Bowl LII winner as our keynote speaker. Former Eagles tight end, Brent Celek, shared his football experiences and the general applicability of the lessons learned to broader aspects of life. His rise through the sport, his approach to when it’s time to change course, his generous attitude towards those that will follow him and ultimately, starting over in a new career at the age of 34. Issues we all face over the course of our lives and careers.

The evening would not have been possible without the generous support of our sponsors! We are grateful for their support which is what enables DCA to pursue its mission on behalf of our membership. Of course, the evening couldn’t be the fun get together that it always is without the turnout from our members. Thank you to all the DCA members that attended and to your guests!