Presented in memory of Paul O’Dwyer, a native of County Mayo who served in the New York City Council and was a nationally recognized civil rights leader and defender of the Irish cause in the U.S.

Community leader Kevin Peter Carroll is the recipient of this year’s Paul O’Dwyer Memorial Award.

A resident of Bay Ridge, Carroll has devoted his career to serving his local community. He currently works for Councilman Stephen Levin as his scheduler.

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he is a graduate of the New York City public school system. He attended McKinley J.H.S. and Fort Hamilton H.S., both Bay Ridge. He continued his academic career in the City University of New York system, graduating from the College of Staten Island with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a minor in history.

In 2006, Carroll took his dedication to Community Board 10, when he was appointed by Councilman Vincent Gentile. He has served on the parks, youth, transportation, senior issues, housing, health and welfare committees, military and veterans affairs committees and currently serves on the environmental and communications and public relations committees. In 2012, he was reappointed to his fourth full term.

He is a founding member of Brooklyn Democrats for Change (BDFC), and has worked hard to bring important community issues to the forefront of the political debate.

On Sept. 14, 2010, he was elected to the position of Democratic State Committeeman/District Leader of the 60th Assembly District, becoming the Democratic Party Leader for the people of Bay Ridge. At 24, he was the youngest elected state committeeman in Brooklyn history. In 2012, he was re-elected to the newly drawn 64th Assembly District.

Since taking office, he has made unifying Bay Ridge on the legislative level a central issue and has helped to put the issue of reforming Albany on the map throughout Bay Ridge and the city, starting with redistricting reform. This is in addition to his work bringing back the B37 bus, making streets safer with greater police enforcement and standing up for the community on the 4th Avenue redesign.

He has demonstrated his commitment to the community through his involvement in community organizations, including Brooklyn Democrats for Change (current board member, past president, first vice president and second vice president); Brooklyn Community Board 10 (member); 68th Police Community Council (member); the Bay Ridge Community Council (past corresponding secretary and board member); the Brooklyn Irish American Parade Committee (member, past sergeant-at-arms, recording secretary); Bay Ridge Historical Society (board member); Fort Hamilton H.S. Alumni Association; Bay Ridge Peace Action and Kassenbrock Brothers Memorial Scholarship Fund.