Cawley remembered for generosity, charitable works

MBNA founder Charles Cawley, who died Wednesday at 74, was well-known among Delaware's charitable organizations, among which he earned a reputation for larger-than-life generosity.

"He didn't talk about it, but he supported a lot of nonprofits in the city and state," said Rich Heffron, president of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce.

Lanny Edelsohn, a neurologist at Christiana Care, called Cawley the "most generous, philanthropic man I've ever known."

Edelsohn's wife, Micki, recalled meeting Cawley at a cocktail party in the early 1990s. Cawley and his wife, Julie, were invited because they just moved into the same neighborhood as the Edelsohns.

During the party, Micki mentioned to Charles Cawley that she was looking to raise funds to build homes for people with developmental disabilities who have aged out of schools. The Edelsohn's son Rob has intellectual disabilities and she was concerned about how such individuals would be cared for as they grew older.

During the conversation, Micki Edelsohn remembered, Charles Cawley listened quietly and then suddenly the man who she had just met volunteered to help. In less than a month, she had a meeting at the bank headquarters. Out of that grew a commitment to build homes for people with intellectual disabilities if they worked at MBNA.

And with that, Cawley created a program hiring individuals with autism, Down syndrome and similar conditions, including Edelsohn's son, to work at MBNA.

"The unemployment rate for people with intellectual disabilities is 85 percent," Micki Edelsohn said Wednesday. "He gave them good jobs and benefits. That was the start of our lifelong friendship."

The program continues to this day at Bank of America, which acquired MBNA in 2006.  About 330 individuals have participated in the program, working in support services positions.

"They felt so good about themselves by getting those jobs," Lanny Edelsohn said. "I can't think him enough for what he's done for my son and those that work at Bank of America."

MBNA founder Charles M. Cawley dies at 74

Paul Calistro Jr., executive director of the West End Neighborhood House, a Wilmington non-profit organization that provides job training and other services to disadvantaged youth, said Charles Cawley changed philanthropy in Delaware. Prior to him, Calistro said, people would spread smaller donations around to multiple charities. He was the first to make single, larger donations to the area's non-profit groups.

Calistro recalled his first meeting with the banking executive. It was merely an introductory meeting and Calistro did not plan to ask for a donation. However, at the end of the meeting, Charles Cawley pulled his checkbook out from his desk and wrote a $1 million check to West End Neighborhood House, he said.

The donation paid for additional classrooms and other needs.

"With one swipe of the pen, he literally paid for 50 percent of our organization's expansion," Calistro said.

That was not the only meeting where Calistro unexpectedly walked away with a donation. He discussed the lack of housing and programs available to children who aged out of foster care with Cawley, who immediately authorized a check for $250,000 to build six houses for the kids.

Brother Ronald Giannone, a Capuchin Franciscan friar, is the executive director of the Ministry of Caring, a Wilmington nonprofit group that provides health and social services support for the homeless and working poor. The charity has been operating in Delaware since 1976.

Giannone met Charles Cawley in the 1980s. He invited Giannone to MBNA to talk about how the bank could benefit his charity. That was the start of a friendship that saw the executive use funds to construct an entire building and renovate another one for the Ministry of Caring.

"He accomplished great things for himself, but never lost sight of the least among us," Giannone said. "He lived with the intent to make this world, this city, this state, a much better place – and he put his personal fortune behind it."

Micki Edelsohn said Cawley's charity often inspired others to follow in his path. She said Cawley's involvement in her work to build group homes for those with developmental disabilities set a great example.

"I rarely had anyone say no to me because he gave me the credibility I needed," she said. "Charlie made all this happen. He changed lives, including my son's."

Contact Jeff Mordock at (302) 324-2786, on Twitter @JeffMordockTNJ or jmordock@delawareonline.com.