The Lehighton Education and Athletic Foundation announced the five Lehighton Area High School graduates named as the 2023 Graduates of Distinction.

LEAF honors graduates who have achieved a lifetime of noteworthy success in their career and contributed to society at the local, state, or national level.

The 2023 Graduates of Distinction will be honored at a banquet at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Lehighton American Legion, Post 314. For ticket information, contact Tim Tkach at 570-657-6700 or email at sharptkach@yahoo.com. Tickets are also available at the Larry Markley Insurance Agency.

Dr. Darryl K. Ahner Class of 1986

Dr. Darryl Ahner graduated from Lehighton in 1986 and continued his education at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated with a B.S. in mechanical engineering in 1990. During his Army career, Ahner served at numerous stateside bases and had an international assignment as a Company Commander in Bahrain. He taught at West Point and the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio.

His military decorations include two Legion of Merit awards, and he has been honored by AFIT and the Secretary of Defense for exceptional accomplishments and service. In July, he accepted a position as the Dean at the College of Engineering and Computer Science at Wright State University.

Ahner and his wife Sheila have four children - sons Joshua and Jeremy and daughters Kristen and Kathleen. They live in Beaver Creek, Ohio.

Lt. Col. (Ret) George D. Brennan II Class of 1957

Lt. Col. (Ret) George D. Brennan II graduated from Lehighton in 1957 and then attended the University of Notre Dame, where he received a bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1961. He entered Marine Officer Candidate School in October 1961 and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in December 1961.

His early assignments in the Marine Corps included duty at Kaneohe Bay in Hawaii as a Rifle Platoon Commander/Executive Officer, in Okinawa, Japan as Training/Executive Officer, and in San Diego in the Weapons Training Battalion. In 1968, he attended the Naval Postgraduate School and after one year of studies, graduated with a master’s degree in Financial Management.

He served a tour in Vietnam with the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade and then was an instructor at the U.S. Naval Academy.

He was assigned to the staff at the Marine Corps Headquarters in the Pentagon and served there until his retirement in January 1982.

After retirement, George and his wife, Mary, purchased a farm near Easton, Maryland, owned an outdoor power equipment company, Rio Del Mar Enterprises, and bred Polled Hereford cattle.

In 2013 he was named to the Maryland Hereford Association Hall of Fame.

Brennan died on June 26, 2022. His wife Mary died in 2012. They are survived by four children – Michael, Mary Catherine, Elizabeth Ann, and Ann Marie, and ten grandchildren.

Jean Buskirk Class of 1989

Jean Buskirk graduated from Lehighton High School in 1989. In 1993, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Information Systems from Bloomsburg University. She earned a Master’s Degree in Information Science from Pennsylvania State University in 2007.

Since 2019, she has acted as the Director of the Portfolio/Program Management Office for ATSM International and the chief of staff for ATSM’s chief information officer.

Before that, Buskirk served as the director of Delivery Management at Aramark, Director of Technology at MAPP Digital, and senior project manager at Siemens Healthcare.

She is a member of the board of directors of the Society of Information Management, Philadelphia Chapter.

Throughout her life, Buskirk has been a shining example of what a young woman can accomplish using her talents and determination to succeed. She earned nine varsity letters at LAHS, was named the top Scholar Athlete for the Class of 1989, and was an all-league selection in both basketball and softball for her sophomore, junior, and senior years.

She was the all-time leader in hits at Bloomsburg University and led the team to a record of 170-25 during her four years. Buskirk was twice named as an NCAA Division II first team All-American, twice as the ECAC Division II South Region Player of the Year, and twice to the NCAA All Mid-Athletic Regional Team. She was a Bloomsburg University Hall of Fame inductee in 2010.

After college, she played ASA fast-pitch softball where she was named an ASA All American four times. She competed for the USA Olympic Team in 1993 and made it to the final round of 60 players. She participated in the 1994 Olympic Festival.

Buskirk began her softball coaching career with West Chester University, later becoming a volunteer coach at Wilkes University and currently with Muhlenburg College.

She is the daughter of Eileen Buskirk of Franklin Township and the late Ernest Buskirk.

Dr. Megan Barry Schroeder Class of 2002

Dr. Megan Barry Schroeder graduated from Lehighton in 2002. During her senior year, Megan was president of the National Honor Society, president of the Student Council, and valedictorian of her class. She also excelled in basketball, softball, and field hockey.

After graduation, she attended Yale University where she studied biomedical engineering, earning her Bachelor of Science degree and graduating cum laude with distinction in her major.

Schroeder was awarded the Wohlenberg Prize for Berkeley College, Yale University, as the outstanding senior engineering student. After graduating from Yale, she continued her education at Northwestern University where she earned her Master of Science and Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Biomedical Engineering in 2014. Her doctoral research was conducted at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and was recognized with a multi-year grant from the Arthritis Foundation. In the spring of 2015, she was hired by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the newly formed Baseball Research and Development Department as a Senior Analyst.

In her current role as Senior Director, Performance Science, she has been invited to speak on panels at sports conferences across the country. She was the subject of an article by the Los Angeles Times about women in baseball and was featured in an MLB Discovery Education video where she spoke about the importance of STEM in her career.

She lives in Glendale, California with her husband and two daughters.

She is the daughter of Maj. Gen. (Ret) Jay and Christine Barry.

Col. (Ret) Kenneth Snyder Class of 1937

Col. (Ret) Kenneth Snyder graduated from Lehighton in 1937. He continued his education at the California Polytechnic State University and was nearing his degree requirements when he decided to enlist in the U.S. Army.

As an Army Air Corps officer, he completed pilot training and was assigned to fly the P-47 Thunderbolt. He flew more than 100 missions over Europe during World War II, including missions in support of D-Day and the Battle of the Bulge. For his participation in flight operations during World War II, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and 17 Air Medals.

After World War II, Kenneth returned home to Lehighton and served in the 165th Military Police Battalion of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. Under his command, the 165th was activated and stationed for over a year in Louisiana in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis. Col. Snyder continued to be recognized for his outstanding service and was named the Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Commander, which consisted of five battalions. Col. Snyder remained in this position until he retired as a Colonel in 1972 after 30 years of military service.

He was employed as a salesman by the Joseph Miorelli and Sons Industrial Construction Company in Hazleton, until his death in 1979.

Kenneth was always involved in the Lehighton community, and was an active member in Trinity Lutheran Church. He served as a youth group leader, Couples of Trinity president, and a member of the Property, Building, and Church Council.

Kenneth was married to Pauline (O’Brian) Snyder from 1944 until his death in 1979. They raised six children, all graduates of Lehighton. The family now includes eight grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.