Faith
Integrity
Diligence
Excellence
Service
Summer 2017
Vol. 80, No. 3
Entered as Periodical
at Post Office, Media, Pa.
The Williamsonian
A PUBLICATION for alumni and friends of Williamson COLLEGE OF THE TRADES
Hamilton, Generous Supporter of
Horticulture Program, Passes Away
Dorrance H. Hamilton
Dorrance H. Hamilton, the billionaire
Campbell Soup Co. heiress for whom
Williamson’s Dorrance H. Hamilton
Horticulture Center is named, passed
away April 18. She was 88.
President Michael Rounds said, “We
are saddened to hear of the passing of
this remarkable woman who played
such a large role in helping Williamson
College of the Trades meet its mission.
Mrs. Hamilton loved horticulture and
the Philadelphia Flower Show and she
offered very generous support to our
Horticulture, Landscaping, and Turf
Management Program because she rec-
ognized the importance of our mission
of training financially deserving young
men to be skilled horticulturists. She
was a great friend and one of the great
benefactors of Williamson and will be
missed by the entire Williamson family.
“To this day, for every person who
walks by the gardens of this center,
propagates a plant in one of the center’s
greenhouses, or takes a class in Alumni
Hall, Mrs. Hamilton’s name will be a
constant reminder that living for oth-
ers is crucial to becoming the useful,
respected citizen Isaiah Williamson en-
visioned.”
After visiting Williamson for the first
time in the mid 1990s, Mrs. Hamilton
became impressed with the school’s
Continued on page 4
Martella, Long-time Machine Tool
Technology Instructor, Passes Away
Carmen Martella Jr., Williamson’s di-
rector of machine tool technology since
1986, passed away June 2 after battling
illness. He was 64.
President Michael Rounds said, “It
is with great sadness that I announce
the passing of our friend and co-worker
Carmen Martella. He lost his long and
Carmen Martella Jr.
courageous fight against an illness that
took him from us all too soon. Carmen
devoted himself entirely to Williamson
and there was nothing he enjoyed more
than running his shop and teaching his
students for the last 31 years — and
those students are the great legacy he
leaves behind. We will miss him greatly.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his
family and friends.”
During his long tenure at Williamson,
Martella not only served his students as
an outstanding instructor, but also was
a role model, mentor, friend, confidant,
and father figure.
He encouraged his students to com-
pete in several categories of SkillsUSA
competitions and guided and accompa-
nied them at district, state, and national
competitions. He also had his students
join the Society of Manufacturing Engi-
neers (SME) and took them to monthly
meetings in Willow Grove.
He formed relationships with the
machining industry that led to employ-
ment opportunities for many of his stu-
dents and the donation of many pieces
Continued on page 6
Community Feels Beneficial Impact
of 2nd Annual Service Week
Thirty nonprofit organizations in the
area, and beyond, benefitted recently
from Williamson College of the Trades’
second annual Service Week, a week in
which almost the entire school — 250
students and 50 faculty and staff, as well
as several trustees, alumni, and Auxilia-
ry members — put into practice in a big
way the school’s core value of service.
The students worked entire days from
Monday to Thursday in small groups
under the supervision of faculty and
staff helping the community with a
variety of work, including preparing
baseball fields for the spring season,
constructing mulch trails, painting, gar-
dening, and making public areas look
nicer. Whatever needed doing, they did.
Among the nonprofits benefiting
from Service Week were the Glenolden
Historical Commission, Tyler Arbore-
tum, Hedgerow Theatre, Media The-
atre, Chester Salvation Army, Frederick
Douglas Christian School, Aston’s Lions
Club, and several churches, to name
only a few.
Other groups went to Camp Mana-
tawny, a Christian summer camp in
Berks County; Ronald McDonald
House and the Veterans Affairs office in
Philadelphia; Middletown High School
in Delaware; Rancho Relaxo, an animal
shelter in New Jersey; and the Domini-
can Republic, to spruce up a hospital
built largely by Williamson students
and alumni over a 16-year period.
Also taking place during Service
Week was the annual Leadership Trip,
in which a group of students and several
staff, along with representatives of the
Coalition for Christian Outreach, went
on a week-long camping and canoeing
trip designed to teach leadership skills
to students who have demonstrated
leadership ability.
And, a number of horticulture and
masonry students remained on campus
working on several special projects.
President Michael Rounds said, “Our
second annual Service Week was a ter-
rific success! To set aside a week for the
entire Williamson community to focus
on our core value of service is a great
way to wrap up the academic year! After
our first attempt at this last year, we de-
cided to move service week from March
to May – immediately following final
exams. The opportunity for students
from different classes and shops to work
Continued on page 7
Lee Rowan School of Power Plant
Technology Sign Is Completed
Williamson’s Power Plant Technology Program now has a sign with the pro-
gram’s new name — the Lee Rowan School of Power Plant Technology. The
program was named after her because of her endowment gift to the Power
Plant Technology Program through the “Building for the Future” capital cam-
paign. The gift gave a tremendous boost to the efforts to create an Energy
Island and made possible the purchase of several items needed to expand
the program. The sign was constructed this spring by Williamson masons
and the landscaping was completed by horticulture students.