Phoenixville Mayor Peter Urscheler
JCI USA, commonly known as the Jaycees, is pleased to announce Mayor Peter Urscheler has been named as one of the 2019 Ten Outstanding Young Americans. Urscheler is one of only ten individuals nationwide who will be honored at the 81st annual black-tie awards ceremony on Saturday, September 28, 2019, at the Omni Hotel in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The Ten Outstanding Young Americans program (TOYA) is one of the oldest and most prestigious recognition programs in America. Urscheler joins an elite group of individuals who have had amazing impact on their communities and the world. Since 1938, JCI USA has sought out young men and women under the age of 40 who best exemplify the finest attributes of America’s youthful achievers in the areas of business or entrepreneurial accomplishment, political achievement, humanitarian and voluntary leadership, and more. Previous honorees include the likes of John F. Kennedy (1946), Gayle Sayers (1969), Elvis Presley (1970), Dick Cheney (1976), Wayne Newton (1977), Bill Clinton (1979), Michele Tafoya (2001), Kurt Warner (2010), and Ruth Riley (2014).
“I’m honored to have been selected to receive this prestigious award. I’m also incredibly humbled to be able to represent the Phoenixville Community on the national stage,” said Mayor Urscheler. “We are the quintessential story of a Pennsylvania Steel Town: strong and innovative. Working together, we have risen from the ashes and reinvented ourselves. I’m simply a reflection of all the incredible people in my community and in my life, this award is for them.”
Peter Urscheler has served as a leader throughout most of his adult life. While attending Stetson University, Urscheler was heavily involved in student government and boasts such major accomplishments as redesigning the Student Activity Fee process and the permanent institution of the University Honor System. After graduating, Urscheler joined SEI and continued to serve Stetson University on the Alumni Board of Directors, the Business School Advisory Board, and worked with SEI leadership to establish a Stetson recruiting team which continues to place Stetson graduates in SEI’s top leadership development program. Peter has served as president of the Phoenixville Jaycees, president of the Pennsylvania Jaycees, chairman of the Phoenixville Regional Chamber of Commerce Ambassador Committee, Membership Advisor of the Phoenixville Area Business Association, and Advisor on Giving to the HEADstrong Foundation. While working tirelessly for his community, Peter also served as the primary caregiver for his mother and father until their respective deaths in 2014 and 2018.
In 2017, Peter was elected as the youngest mayor in the history of the Borough of Phoenixville. As Mayor, Peter has worked to modernize the policies and procedures of the borough’s police department in an effort to boost morale and insure the department’s commitment to community policing. Peter undertakes over 200 official functions per year on behalf of the Borough and through Peter’s leadership, the once depressed steel town of over 17,500 residents has experienced a revitalization.
The JCI USA 2019 Ten Outstanding Young Americans are:
Jessica Armstrong, 39, Assistant Director/Assistant Team Coordinator, UF First Coast Child Protection Team, Jacksonville, FL
SMSGT David Boyd, 39, Senior Master Sergeant, United States Air Force
Jimmy Charles, 38, Country Recording Artist/National Spokesman for Zero Cancer/President, I Am Not Alone, Nashville, TN
Jason Coleman, 39, Founder & Executive Director of Project SYNCERE, Chicago, IL
Marjorie Eastman, 39, Author, Cary, NC
Lindsey Gast, 40, President of GastHouse Public Relations, St. Johns, FL
Kyle Rossin, 27, Co-Founder/CEO Mang, LLC, West Palm Beach, FL
Erik Servellon, 32, Business Outreach Coordinator, Avenue Scholars Foundation, Omaha, NE
Elec Simon, 37, World Percussionist, Canton, OH
Peter Urscheler, 35, Mayor of the Borough of Phoenixville, Phoenixville, PA
