Feb 21, 2014 3 min read

Diana Irey Vaughan, the first woman elected a Washington County commissioner, will be the subject of the “Dyin’ To Get Irate at Irey” roast at 5:30 p.m. March 28 at the Hilton Garden Inn, Southpointe, to benefit the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, Chartiers Township.

“This is for a good cause,” said Irey Vaughan said. “I think it’s all in good fun. If I can offer myself up and raise money for a good cause like the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, I’m happy to do so.”

Irey Vaughan, vice chairman of the three-person board of county commissioners, has been a roaster at similar events for Commission Chairman Larry Maggi and Bracken Burns, their former colleague on the board. This time around, a caricature shows her wearing Mouseketeer ears riding a trolley with the destination “Disney World.”

Theme music for the roast will be a repertoire of Disney tunes, said Irey Vaughan, who is in the midst of her fifth, four-year term.

Jim Roddey, chairman of the Allegheny County Republican Party, will serve as master of ceremonies at the event, for which John Swiatek, managing director of Innovation Sports and Entertainment, and Tom Rooney are co-chairmen.

Rooney, a museum trustee said, “This is our most important fundraiser of the year and it literally helps to keep the trolleys running.”

The roast will include dinner and an auction conducted by Tripp Kline of Three Rivers Auction Co., Washington. Among the items being auctioned are signed guitars from Brett Michaels, a Thomas Kinkade framed and signed trolley print, artwork from other notable artists plus sports memorabilia and tickets to sports and entertainment events.

The first three streetcars arrived at the museum site 60 years ago February 7, 1954, and its collection of historic trolleys has grown to 50 since that time. The collection includes trolleys from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia and the original “Streetcar Named Desire” from New Orleans. First known as the Arden Trolley Museum, it opened to the public in 1963.

It is staffed mostly by 150 volunteers who donate about 30,000 hours per year.

Range Resources is the presenting sponsor, the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency is the reception sponsor and the media sponsor is the Observer-Reporter. Corporate sponsors so far include Sarris Candies, the Washington County Chamber of Commerce and WesBanco. Sponsorships are still available by emailing Scott Becker, executive director at the trolley museum, at sbecker@pa-trolley.org.

Tickets purchased by March 1 are available at the trolley museum at a special early-bird price of $125 each or $900 for a table of eight. After that date, they will be sold individually for $150 or by tables of eight for $1,000.

Tickets include hors d’oeuvres, dinner and entertainment. There will be a cash bar. Part of the ticket price is a tax-deductible contribution. More information is available at www.patrolley.org, via email vsm@pa-trolley.org or by calling 724-228-9256.