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The judges of the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County are seeking candidates for appointment as trustee of the Trexler Trust to succeed Malcolm J. Gross, Esquire, upon the expiration of his second ten-year term in July, 2020. Through the capable stewardship of Attorney Gross and his four co-trustees, the Trust, created by General Harry C. Trexler at his death in 1933, has continued to grow and is currently a $120 million charitable foundation that annually awards grants to many organizations and programs that serve the citizenry of Lehigh County.
“Malcolm Gross has served the Trexler Trust with fidelity, wisdom and compassion for the past 20 years,” said President Judge Edward D. Reibman. “His unique perspective, derived from his deep family roots in the community, including his father, Mal Gross, who served as Mayor of Allentown and for whom the Rose Gardens are named, his life-long love for Lehigh County and its people, and his exceptional career as one of the foremost and most influential attorneys in the County for over 50 years, has been invaluable. His philanthropic and community knowledge combined with his keen analytical powers and sense of fairness, which have provided such focus and balance to the Trust, will be difficult to replicate and sorely missed, especially by his co-trustees, Barnet H. Fraenkel, Jamie P. Musselman, L. Charles Marcon and J. Scott Pidcock. As Attorney Gross enjoys his much-deserved retirement, the Court seeks an individual to succeed him who shares his dedication and passion for improving the quality of life in Lehigh County; a person who has developed a broad and deep understanding of the composition and needs of our community, is a careful listener and an effective communicator, and is possessed of both the financial acumen and philanthropic boldness to carry on the important work of the Trexler Trust.”
Each of the five trustees of the Trexler Trust spends 400 to 500 hours per year managing and overseeing the investment of the Trust’s assets, evaluating applications and associated financial documents, conducting site visits, determining the recipients of annual grants in accordance with the terms of the Trust which includes distributions to the City of Allentown for the maintenance and improvement of the City’s park system and to the County of Lehigh for improvements to the Trexler Nature Preserve. The trustees are ably assisted in these endeavors, as well as the annual preparation and filing of an account of the trust administration with the Orphans’ Court, by a full time Executive Director and two assistants. Pursuant to the Will of General Trexler, a trustee must be a citizen and permanent resident of Lehigh County and may not be an elected official.
“We are looking for someone who is familiar with the entire community in general and the nonprofit community in particular, someone who can analyze the efficacy of a particular application and also envision the long term collective effect of the grants the Trust awards,” said Judge Reibman. “We look forward to the selection process because we know that Lehigh County is home to a wealth of experienced individuals who are committed to public service and the good of our community.”
To learn more about the Trust, visit its website at www.trexlertrust.org. Individuals interested in being considered for the trustee vacancy may apply only by: 1) completing the fillable application form available on the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County website at www.lccpa.org/trexlertrust; and 2) mailing the completed application to Kerry Turtzo, Court Administrator, Lehigh County Courthouse, Room 614, 455 W. Hamilton Street, Allentown, PA 18101-1614, ATTN: Trexler Trustee. The deadline for applications is March 20, 2020.
Information provided to TVL by:
President Judge Edward D. Reibman
Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County
Lehigh County Courthouse | 455 W. Hamilton Street
Allentown, PA 18101
