Casey Donahue named 2026 St. Patrick’s Day Parade Grad Marshal

PITTSTON – When it comes to choosing a grand marshal for the City of Pittston St. Patrick’s Parade, you can’t get any more Irish than the name Casey Donahue.

Donahue will be front and center on Saturday, March 7, for the 13th Annual St. Patrick’s Parade as the 2026 grand marshal.

He has been involved with the Pittston St. Patrick’s Parade since its inception, serving as the Plank St. division coordinator under the direction of his daughter, Sarah Cianfichi, longtime parade coordinator. As someone who has volunteered from the beginning, he never gave it a second thought on him being chosen grand marshal.

“It was a total surprise,” Donahue said. “I’ve been so involved with the parade, I never really thought about it. It’s definitely an honor and caught me by surprise. At this point in time, I’m usually focused on getting ready for the parade and my division and getting our tailgate ready before the parade starts.”

Living nearly his entire life in the Pittston area, Donahue is a 1972 graduate of St. John the Evangelist High School, followed by receiving a business administration degree from Penn State University.

Donahue is a volunteer firefighter with the Jenkins Twp. Fire Dept. and was recently elected as an officer for the 50th consecutive year.

He has served as trustee, foreman and captain and currently serves as treasurer of both the fire department and the Firefighters Relief Assoc., a position he has held since 1979.

As a fundraiser, he has secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants for the organization’s vehicles and equipment.

Donahue was involved with the Greater Pittston Stoners soccer organization for nearly 30 years. He has served as a coach, referee, coaching education director, and member of the board of directors, and is currently director emeritus.

Donahue has twice received The Stoners Award for his dedication to the game and commitment to the children of the area. Under his coaching, his teams have won several league championships and tournaments throughout eastern PA.

When his children were grown, he continued to coach and to help the organization by maintaining the Jenkins Lions fields and securing thousands of dollars in grants for equipment and field restoration.

As a member of the Patriot Soccer Booster Club, he created the outdoor Patriot Cup soccer tournament, which is still a major fundraiser for the organization.

Donahue was an active member of the former Greater Pittston Jaycees, winning the C. William Brownfield Award for outstanding service in his first year and the Jaycee of the Year award.

He is a member of the John F. Kennedy Council #372 Knights of Columbus, Greater Pittston Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, and Avoca Chapter Ancient Order of Hibernians.

Donahue was an elected member of the Luzerne County Democratic Committee for several terms, serving on the Third District Executive Board.

He also served on the Board of Directors of the Greater Pittston YMCA.

Donahue served a four-year term on the Board of Education of the Pittston Area School District. He is proud to have been at the forefront of creating the girls’ lacrosse program during his term.

As an accomplished winemaker, he has won several medals, including Winemaker of the Year at the Santino J. Gubbiotti wine competition.

He had a 16-year career with Acme Markets in Pittston before joining Kraft Foods as an account manager.

Donahue joined Dean Witter as a financial advisor in 1992 and was appointed associate VP in 2000, a position, which he currently holds with Morgan Stanley, Scranton.

He is the son of the late James and Betty Donahue and is married to the former Julie Brosso of West Pittston. They currently reside in Jenkins Twp.

The Donahues are the parents of Sarah Cianfichi and Jessica Tropp and grandparents to Reid and Harrison Tropp.