Frances Sheehan, president of The Foundation for Delaware County, has been named the 2023 Athena Leadership Award recipient by the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce.

She will be recognized Oct. 4 at the ATHENA Leadership Luncheon Oct. 4 at the Springfield Country Club in Springfield.

“Sheehan, a Swarthmore resident, is the first president of Delaware County’s largest philanthropy, is a “true embodiment of #leadership, dedication, and positive impact,” states a Delaware County Chamber of Commerce release.

The Foundation for Delaware County is an independent public foundation formed on July 1, 2016.

Frances Sheehan came to the Foundation six months later after serving 15 years as the founding president and CEO of the Brandywine Health Foundation (now the Alliance for Health Equity) in Coatesville, Chester County

The Foundation operates with a staff of more than 75 people in four Delaware County offices.

It provides philanthropic services to donors who wish to invest in Delaware County, makes grants to launch new initiatives, and supports non-profits improving Delaware County.

It also runs high-quality, evidence-based public health programs such as Nurse-Family Partnership, Healthy Start, and WIC.

The Foundation has been fully accredited by the Council on Foundation’s “National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations” and has achieved Guidestar’s Platinum status.

Prior to her work at the Brandywine Health Foundation, Sheehan ran Planned Parenthood of Chester County, and has served on a variety of boards of directors, including the Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry and as president of the Philanthropy Network of Greater Philadelphia.

She currently serves as president of the Delaware County Estate Planning Council, vice chair of the Delaware County Interactive Gaming Revenue Authority, and serves on the board of directors of the Delaware County Economic Development Oversight Board, the Riverfront Alliance of Delaware County, and Children First (formerly PCCY).

Sheehan has an MBA from Temple University and a BA with honors from Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT.

She also holds Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) and Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP) certifications and has won several awards over the years, including the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Award, the Main Line Chamber’s Gold Leaf Award, March of Dimes Woman of Achievement in the Field of Health, and the Chester County Chamber of Commerce’s Robert J. Thompson Citizen of the Year Award.