2024 Gold Medalist
Thomas B. Hagen

LONGTIME ERIE BUSINESS, CIVIC AND PHILANTHROPIC LEADER THOMAS B. HAGEN TO RECEIVE 2024 GOLD MEDAL FOR DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT

Gold Medal to be Presented at The Pennsylvania Society’s
126th Annual Dinner in NYC on December 7

WILLOW GROVE (Aug. 13, 2024) – Patricia Wellenbach, President of The Pennsylvania Society, today announced that Erie business, civic and philanthropic leader Thomas B. Hagen will receive The Pennsylvania Society’s highest honor when he accepts the 2024 Gold Medal for Distinguished Achievement at the Society’s Annual Dinner on December 7, 2024 in New York City. Hagen, himself a former President of the Society, will be feted by members and friends as The Pennsylvania Society celebrates and honors Pennsylvania’s leadership in the economic and industrial life of our nation.

Thomas B. Hagen has been a business and civic leader for more than 60 years. He is chairman and a former CEO of the Fortune 500 listed Erie Insurance Group and also chairman of Custom Engineering Co. A retired U.S. Navy Captain, Tom served as the first Secretary of the Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED) in the Governor Tom Ridge Administration. He was co-founder and past chairman of Team Pennsylvania Foundation and a past Chairman of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business & Industry.

“Anyone who has been closely affiliated with The Pennsylvania Society over the last several decades has benefitted from Tom Hagen’s wisdom, generosity, and kindness. I am fortunate to count myself among them,” said Wellenbach. “Tom embodies what it means to be of service to the Commonwealth we all love. Because of Tom’s selfless nature and his humility, we are so pleased to highlight his philanthropic and civic contributions throughout the Keystone State, far beyond his many business successes. For more than six decades, Tom Hagen has exemplified a life of service in a variety of endeavors for the benefit of his community, his Commonwealth, and his country. For that we are grateful and are honored to celebrate his remarkable contributions this December.”

Wellenbach noted that while Tom Hagen continues to make significant philanthropic contributions in local, statewide, and national non-profit organizations, historic property restoration efforts, and economic development initiatives, he has left a particularly indelible mark on his hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania. He has funded the Susan Hirt Hagen Center for Transformational Philanthropy at the Erie Community Foundation, the first of its kind for philanthropy in Greater Erie; the restoration of the historic main building at the beloved Erie Zoo; the Susan Hirt Hagen Center for Community Outreach, Research and Evaluation (CORE) at Penn State Behrend Campus; and the Hagen History Center. Tom is also personally investing in the revitalization of Erie through Erie Restorations, LLC and the Historic Preservation Trust that he founded and chairs. A trustee of American Ancestors in Boston and a recipient of Preservation Pennsylvania’s Otto Haas Award, Tom has led the restoration of over 20 houses in the West Sixth Street Historic District with plans to preserve and maintain a total of more than 40 buildings as part of this initiative.

Born in Buffalo, NY, Tom moved to Erie at age seven and attended Erie Public Schools, graduating from Strong Vincent High School. He attended Penn State Behrend and received a B.S. degree in Business from The Ohio State University, where he was a Griffith Scholar and President of the Insurance Society. He also holds an Honorary Doctorate in Public Service from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and Honorary Doctor of Laws from Mercyhurst University where the History Department is named in his honor.

Tom and his late wife, Susan Hirt Hagen, a prominent community leader, philanthropist and Distinguished Citizen of the Commonwealth, are the parents of two: Jonathan Hirt Hagen, Vice Chairman of Erie Insurance and Sarah Hagen McWilliams, a Trustee of the Erie Community Foundation and a Trustee of the Chautauqua Institution; and, grandparents of three.

The Society’s Gold Medal for Distinguished Achievement was founded in 1908 and is presented annually to a prominent person, or persons, in recognition of leadership, citizenship and contributions to the arts, science, education and industry. In addition to the honor itself, The Pennsylvania Society contributes $25,000 annually to a Pennsylvania charity chosen by the recipient of the Gold Medal. Thomas B. Hagen’s charity will be announced at the Annual Dinner to be held at the New York Hilton Midtown.