United Way honors Dorota Gasienica-Kozak, Esq. as she concludes her tenure as Board Chair
We honor Dorota Gasienica-Kozak, Esq. as she concludes her tenure as Chair of United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley Board of Directors. In 2022, Kozak’s leadership and vision guided the organization in creating a clear vision for the future and began investments to achieve three new and bold goals by 2030: ensuring that more students are successful in school, more older adults can access the resources they need to stay healthy, and every person in the Greater Lehigh Valley has a solid foundation of food, housing, and mental health services. Over the past year, she also helped navigate an important transition in the organization, guiding us as United Way President David Lewis began his retirement and 17-year United Way veteran Marci Lesko assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer.
“Dorota’s leadership has been instrumental in guiding United Way through a period of extraordinary growth and has positioned us for great success in the future,” remarked Marci Lesko, United Way Chief Executive Officer. “Her dedication to our mission and her ability to unite our community around bold solutions has left a lasting impact on our organization and the Greater Lehigh Valley. We are deeply grateful for her service and vision.”
Kozak served as United Way’s Board Chair since July 2022, leaving a legacy of resilience and innovation. She loved being a member of the United Way Board of Directors because “we help change lives every day.” Kozak is a partner in the KingSpry law firm and chair of the Adoption/Assisted Reproductive Technology practice section. She also practices in the areas of family law and estate planning.
Kozak will remain on United Way’s Board and a member of the executive committee as the immediate past board chair.
United Way also thanks Marilee Falco, Diana Laquinta, Joanne Raphael and Joseph Roy, Ed.D. for their leadership and deep commitment to creating a stronger community for everyone in the region during their tenue on the organization’s Board of Directors.
Marilee Falco is responsible for client financial strategy and counsel, comprehensive financial planning and investment management as a Financial Strategist at Agili. Before joining the team, Falco was Vice President and Financial Advisor at Sovereign Bank and also worked at Morgan Stanley for 15 years. Falco is a Certified Financial Planner™ and Chartered Financial Consultant who has been recognized with several prestigious awards, including the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation Service to Philanthropy Award in 2018, the Lehigh Valley Business “Women of Influence” Award in 2014 and the 2020 Girl Scouts of Lehigh Valley Take the Lead Honoree. She has served as the Past President of United Way Women United and is actively involved with the Estate Planning Council of the Lehigh Valley, the Women’s Giving Circle of Good Shepherd Rehabilitation and the Board of Associates at Lehigh Valley Community Foundation.
Diana Laquinta was a member of the United Way board since 2019 and resigned in January 2024. She demonstrated remarkable intelligence, talent and strategic vision as she led our Impact Council and helped shape our 8-year plan around our Bold Goals. United Way is happy to see her continued success in her new role as President of St. Luke’s Miners Campus and know that her invaluable contributions will continue to make a profound impact.
Joanne Raphael had a more than 30-year career with PPL Corporation. She retired as the company’s former Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary in 2021. In addition to leading PPL’s legal department, Raphael was responsible for PPL’s compliance, federal government relations, corporate communications and philanthropy functions. Her PPL career encompassed a number of other roles, including senior vice president and chief external affairs officer, during which time she led the company’s community affairs, environmental, state government relations and real estate groups. She is a past chair of United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley and previously served on a number of nonprofit boards, including the PPL Foundation, the Pennsylvania Chamber for Business and Industry, Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation and Grand View Hospital.
Joseph Roy, Ed.D., was formerly the Superintendent of the Bethlehem Area School District, the sixth largest school district in Pennsylvania, serving 13,000 students in 22 schools. He served as Superintendent from 2010-2023. Dr. Roy was named 2017 Superintendent of the Year for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Roy was the recipient of the 2022 Communities In Schools – Champion of Education Award; 2017 Priscilla Payne Hurd Award from the Bethlehem Area Chamber of Commerce; 2013 Excellence in Education Award; Lehigh University/University Council for Educational Leadership; the 2011 United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley Community Builder Award; the 2005 National School Public Relations Association’s Outstanding Communicator Award; and the School Library Journal’s 2004 National Administrator of the Year Award.
