Kevin Madden praised for starting county government transformation

Kevin Madden, who came to Delaware County government with a team that set the stage for a pivotal political transformation, participated in his final County Council meeting last week.

Elected in 2017 along with council running mate Brian Zidek, Controller Joanne Phillips, Sheriff Jerry Sanders, Register of Wills Mary Walk and Court of Common Pleas Judge Kelly Eckel, Madden and Zidek’s victory, along with Phillips, Sanders and Walk, saw the first Democrats elected to countywide positions in Delaware County since the Civil War.

Eckel lost in 2017 to Judge Jack Whelan but won a spot on the bench two years later.

Having served two four-year terms on county council, Madden is restricted by term limits from continuing to serve.

While momentous, at that time, Madden and Zidek still were in the political minority.

The early days

“We came in and were looked at like some people who had just crashed the party,” the 46-year-old Haverford resident said as he thanked then-County Council Chair John McBlain, then-Council Vice Chair Colleen Morrone, then-Executive Director Marianne Grace, and Common Pleas Judge Kevin Kelly.

“They really reached out across what so many of those around them treated as enemy lines,” Madden said. “Few now remember how much this place was different. We were persona non grata. I don’t want to say they were all against us but it certainly felt that way sometimes.”

He said they acted with real compassion and found ways as public servants to work together.

“They were doing so against a real wall of resistance to change amongst those who they grew up around,” Madden said. “It made those first two years a little less lonely and showed glimpses that a bipartisan cooperation might be possible in this world.”

He also gave a nod to the Republican incumbent Dave White, who called and conceded the close race that election night eight years ago.

He also thanked his running mates.

“I’ve never been through anything like that and they were great people to be in the trenches with,” Madden said. “We went through some very public and some very personal attacks, and it only steeled my resolve that we were doing this right.”

His voice began to choke, as it did several times during his comments at the final council meeting.

“Dismantling a century-old political machine that was built around personal benefit and enrichment for those on the inside. It was really at the expense of the people who needed these services the most … it was the fight of a lifetime and I’m really proud of what we did,” Madden said.

‘Deep gratitude’

He praised his current council colleagues.

“I’m grateful that you will continue this work in the service of the public, doing what you believe in your hearts to be right even if it takes some real courage in the moment to say the unpopular thing in this room,” he said.

He also spoke to county leadership and the entire county workforce.

“I’m really leaving office with a feeling of completion and reassurance … and deep gratitude as a resident of Delaware County,” Madden said. “I know that you’ll remain serving the public and that … gives me great reassurance. We have some truly extraordinary leaders and servants.”

He also thanked both those who supported him, and those that didn’t.

“To those who entrusted me with this office who either fought hard campaigning or who simply voted for me, I will forever be thankful to you for giving me this opportunity,” Madden said. “It hasn’t been easy at times but there’s truly nothing like fulfillment of knowing you’re expending your life on something worthwhile and service to the community.”

Then, he added, “To those who didn’t vote for me, who disagree with me, your challenges make us refine our thinking and I’m forever grateful for that. It may not always feel that way in the moment but what you do coming in here, it does get us closer to the right answer. I’d rather they all be more civil but for those that exercise that, I really appreciate it.”

‘Gift of a lifetime’

To his parents, his wife and his 4-month-old son, Madden said, “Thank you for your love and support and understanding.”

He said he hopes people will enter public service, as intimidating as it can be.

“My hope is that good people will continue to enter the arena at whatever level that is,” Madden said. “Perhaps most critically at the local level. There’s no fame or name recognition but with the impact you can have directly on folks’ lives is so much more tangible and personal … Believe me, it is truly worth it.”

He said he expects to look upon this time in his life with gratitude.

“Later on in life, I’m certain the moments of pettiness or venom that we hear in these meetings, they’ll be faded,” he said. “What I think I’ll be looking back on this chapter is a real profound sense of completion and enrichment. Public service has been a gift of a lifetime and thank you.”

Besides serving as a council member, Madden also served as chair of the county Jail Oversight Board and the county Board of Managers of Juvenile Detention.

What others said

With most of the comments about Madden were complimentary in nature, one frequent critic stayed true to her messaging even at the council member’s final meeting.

“I’m so glad you are going,” Kim Brown of Colwyn said. “I’ll be scarred for life for voting for you.”

Calling the Jail Oversight Board “useless” and saying she’s left with questions about the prison, she added, “The jail is misspending the tax dollars.”

Her perspective was alone in that characterization of Madden.

Zidek, the former county council member and Madden’s 2017 running mate, offered a different impression.

“Kevin is everything you would want in a partner,” he said. “He is smart. He’s energetic. He’s creative. He’s hard-working. He’s charismatic. He was even kind enough to laugh at my jokes once in a while.”

Zidek gave an example he felt exemplified Madden’s service.

“It was a cold dark winter’s evening … (in) 2018 or 2019 and we got word that there was a portion of the prison where the heat had gone out,” he said. “Rather than just post on Facebook angrily or just bang our heads against the wall, Kevin took it upon himself to reach out to the warden, to reach out to GEO to find out, if in fact, this was true.

“He was told, ‘Don’t worry about it. Everything’s fine. Nothing to see here,’ ” Zidek continued. “But Kevin didn’t leave it there.

“He got into his car. He drove out to the prison, said, ‘I want to see this for myself’ and in fact, there was a portion of the prison where there was no heat,” he said. “So these are people we are entrusted to take care of and we weren’t taking care of them. Kevin took action and by his action, he got heat restored far more quickly than it would have been otherwise.”

Zidek said there are dozens of examples just like this.

“Kevin would speak for those who didn’t have a voice,” he said, whether it was the incarcerated, stray animals or people suffering  from opioid disorder.

“Kevin is a true public servant, Zidek said. “He didn’t take this job, didn’t seek this job to seek higher office or for his own business interests or those of his family. He took the job because he thought he could make a difference in our community and boy, he sure has.”

County Executive Director Barbara O’Malley said it has been wonderful to see his calm demeanor and clear thought as well as his care and passion he has for the employees at the George W. Hill Correctional Facility, the incarcerated people there and the communities where the incarcerated people return.

She thanked him for modeling his advocacy of justice reform that provides justice and works for the people.

Solicitor Lee Awbrey had similar sentiments.

“Thank you … for your unwavering commitment to compassionate criminal justice reform that is smart and that does not compromise public safety,” she said. “It has been a pleasure to work with you and to see all the changes that you have put in place, to witness the integrity and heart that you apply to decision-making and the seriousness and thoughtfulness with which you give consideration to those voices that approach you with recommendations.”

Current council

His colleagues on council spoke as well.

“Very few things in government come down to one person and the progress we’ve made in Delco has many who can claim a part,” Council Chair Dr. Monica Taylor said. “Over and over again, the one common denominator that has made so much change possible is Kevin.”

She spoke about the prison, especially as Madden was instrumental in the movement to have the county retake operations there from private control, which happened in 2022.

“Every meeting, we hear about problems that are perceived at the facility but conditions today for staff and people who are incarcerated are far different than they were just a few years ago,” Taylor said. “The facility was in an extreme state of disrepair. Staff were paid far below market wages as a result, quality staff were difficult to recruit and even harder to retain.

“Incarcerated people were often kept in cells 23 hours, not because of poor behavior but because there were not sufficient staff to provide humane conditions for people,” she added.

Taylor described Madden as a quintessential public servant.

“Kevin’s story here is a reminder to all of us of what it should mean to be in public service,” she said. “He’s never driven by a need for personal attention or accolades. He listens intently, considers fully and never says more than what he knows.

Council Member Christine Reuther, who ran unsuccessfully for council in 2015 with the closest margin to date at that time, knew the tenacity it took to run in that environment.

“It took a lot of courage and a lot of motivation and a real commitment to jump in … what we knew would be a tough race with one incumbent running,” she said of Madden and his 2017 race. “To do it and to move in and master the details of what you guys had to master and choose to focus in particular on the prison, I think it was such a gift to this county.”

Reuther noted how Madden helped change the conversation around the operations of the county prison.

“There’s a threshold which is, ‘Should anyone be making a profit off of incarceration?’ ” she said.

She tipped her hat to her colleague.

“I applaud everything that you’ve done,” Reuther said. “I think you’ve done work that you should be very proud of and I really appreciate your service.”

Madden’s colleagues also made a video with parting remarks of their own.

“I think Kevin’s biggest strength in public service is his ability to continue with a goal and work towards that goal and try to make sure he accomplishes it,” Taylor said on it.

Council Vice Chair Richard Womack spoke to Madden’s strengths on the clip.

“Kevin has always spoken his mind,” he said. “He has always taken things seriously. He’s very sincere in what he does … Kevin is like a taking a tiger by the tail. Once he gets a hold of something, he don’t turn lose something until he gets satisfaction.”

And, Council Member Elaine Paul Schaefer recalled Madden as “cool under pressure, very passionate and a person who really cares about others.”

“He takes the issues on very practically and very thoughtfully, comes to his positions, I think, with a lot of forethought and weighing the pros and cons carefully,” she said, noting he cares deeply about the people of Delaware County and serving and treating them as a neighbor and human.

“Kevin was one of the very first sparks that really started the transformation of this county: Make it more professional, make it work for the residents and not for the people who are in power, literally every aspect of government has improved since that spark that started the transformation,” Schaefer said. “I think our entire county is in debt to Kevin for his dedication and his passion about criminal justice reform.”

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