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Tracy (Staikides) Sammarone ’91 and Mark Sammarone ’84 say that they came to West Chester as students and never left. Mark was a native of Pittsburgh and Tracy came from southern Chester County when they entered WCU just three years apart.

“We landed in the community, found out how special it was, and we stayed,” Mark says.

Both work at Arthur Hall Insurance in the borough, where Mark is executive vice president and Tracy is an account manager. Their work focuses on supplying property, casualty, liability, and workers compensation insurance for businesses. Mark joined the firm in 2000 and became part of the third generation of owners who bought the company in 2005.

Giving back to the community is as important to the Sammarones as career success. The couple, who met after they graduated, have volunteered in various West Chester organizations for more than 30 years. They share their passion for volunteerism with daughter Chelsea, who earned her master’s degree in education at WCU in 2023.

“She didn't have a choice but to be part of the community too, because we had her with us all the time,” quips Tracy.

“Community involvement is a lifestyle,” adds Mark, who majored in speech communications. “People sometimes say ‘I wish I had more time.’ It’s really not about having time or not having time. It’s what you make a priority.”

“Community involvement is a lifestyle. It’s really not about having time or not having time. It’s what you make a priority.”

It’s also been a way to stay connected to WCU. Good relationships between the University and the town are important and the Sammarones say fostering them is a priority for President Chris Fiorentino. “In almost everything we do as volunteers, there is usually somebody related to the University connected as well,” Mark says.

Tracy, who majored in American Studies, serves on the board of the West Chester Downtown Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the Business Improvement District. For 17 years, she chaired the group’s major event, Up On The Roof, held atop the Chestnut Street Parking Garage. She also is on the West Chester Advisory Board of the Greater Brandywine YWCA.

Mark served multiple terms on the Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce board, including two years as board chair, and was president of the Rotary Club of West Chester. During the early years of his chamber service, he met President Fiorentino, who recently invited him to join the Student Services, Inc. (SSI) board. “He realized I valued the University and wanted to help students,” Mark says. SSI is a non-profit organization that oversees the finances of all co-curricular student and campus activities.

The couple also supports WCU students by contributing to several West Chester University Foundation funds. The Fund to Finish, which provides emergency aid enabling students to graduate, is especially meaningful to Tracy, who worked her way through college, taking extra time to finish. “I would have finished [on time] academically, but financially it was a little more difficult,” she says.

Mark also supports WCU in his chamber role. “We put together several programs to allow the business community to interface with the University,” he says, adding that such opportunities allow students to gain experiential learning. Initiatives have included pairing marketing classes with businesses to develop custom marketing plans; involving local employers in a student job fair; and connecting businesses and students through Handshake, the online platform for jobs and internships.

Partnerships work both ways, the Sammarones say, noting many student volunteers come to help at community events. “There’s a lot of good energy between downtown and the University.”