Former SV school board member dies
Former Seneca Valley School Board member Ken Brennan died Tuesday at the age of 54 at UPMC Cranberry.
Brennan of Evans City was involved in a myriad of activities, most of all the school board on which he served for 14 years. He left the board in 2009.
Linda Andreassi, director of communications for the district, said Brennan had a long history with the district.
He graduated from Seneca Valley in 1978 as did his wife. All three of their children also graduated from the school.
Andreassi said Brennan was “very active” on the board and also was extensively involved with the Butler County Vocational-Technical School.
“Everyone here was shocked and saddened to hear the news this morning and our thoughts are with his friends and family during this terribly difficult time,” Andreassi said.
Joseph Cunningham, director of the vo-tech, echoed the sentiments that Brennan was one of the hardest working people he’s met.
Brennan was always “very, very proud” of the vo-tech and its students, and he was always a “huge advocate” for the school.
“It was a pleasure and a privilege to work with him,” Cunningham said. “He will be sorely missed.”
Ann Reale, who served on the Seneca board with Brennan for more than a decade, was shocked to hear of his death.
She said, “Ken was very loyal to his constituents (on the school board) and he loved contributing back to the community. He was too young to pass away, that’s for certain.”
Brennan’s wife, Susan, said he was her high school sweetheart and they were married in 1980, two years after they graduated from Seneca Valley.
She said he was a proud father who personally handed each of his three children their diplomas on their graduation days.
“He was a very strong person in the community and in the family,” she said.
He was the council president at English Lutheran Church in Zelienople.
He was a past president of the Zelienople Rotary Club and the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau, and was a member of the Republican State Committee.
Pat Boylan was in the Rotary Club with Brennan for more than a decade and said his friend will be missed.
“He was a hardworking guy dedicated to his church, dedicated to the community and of course dedicated to the school district,” Boylan said.
“He would always step up to the plate and was never afraid to throw his two cents in to get something done.”
The Boylan Funeral Home in Zelienople is handling funeral arrangements.
His obituary is on Page 6.
