The Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children (PennAEYC) recently honored educators during their 2025 Voice for Children Celebration.

The VOICE for Children Award is the only statewide award in Pennsylvania recognizing early care and education professionals, who are not paid advocates but go above and beyond their daily work in the field by being grassroots leaders through advocacy and public policy efforts. The award celebrates not only individual award recipients, but also the early childhood profession. PennAEYC presented this year’s award recipients at an event on April 4.

Trying Together recognizes and congratulates two honorees in particular who have worked closely with the organization.

Honorees

Lesely Crawford, an educator and the executive director of Pittsburgh’s ABK Learning and Development Center, was among this year’s three honorees. She was nominated by Trying Together.

“Lesely’s love for children and her desire to educate them led her to open her own early learning center. She was concerned with the struggles of her students and felt that she could do more for them if she caught them earlier. Not wanting to leave any children behind, ABK Learning & Development Center was born. As she organized and structured the program, she felt compelled to focus on families that lacked sufficient care during nontraditional hours. ABK Learning & Development Center would be open 24 hours, seven days a week to accommodate parents. Through the partnership with the housing Authority the City of Pittsburgh, she opened her second facility, Bedford Hope Center. ” Read full bio.

Eva Wood (executive director of Ligonier Valley Learning Center, Inc. in Latrobe) was also honored this year. She is a long-time partner of Trying Together and recently became part of Trying Together’s ECE Advocacy Fellowship. As a result of her involvement in the ECE Advocacy Fellowship, she began the Westmoreland Director’s Team which is already meeting and has grown to almost 40 members.

Most recently, Eva contributed a story to the “Day in the Life” advocacy project through Trying Together, which encourages others to gain a deeper understanding of the realities facing children, families, and early childhood educators across the state. Read full bio.

Other honorees include:

• VOICE for Children Student Honoree: Sonya Geisinger (owner/operator of Sonya Sue Geisinger’s Family Daycare in Coopersburg)
• Distinguished Career Nominee: Gail Nourse, a consultant and first director of The Pennsylvania Key
• Vision Award Honoree: The Schuylkill Chamber of Commerce was this year’s Vision Award honoree.

The gala was held at the Hershey Lodge and more than 125 early childhood care and education professionals were in attendance. Jasmine Brooks, an anchor for CBS 21, acted as the event’s emcee.

For more information, visit the 2025 Voice for Children Celebration website.