WESTFIELD — The Rotary Club of Westfield Foundation awarded $125,400 in scholarships June 3 to 14 students. Since 1967, the local Rotary organization has awarded over $3.4 million in scholarships to approximately 1,800 students.
During the event held at Westfield High School, Carl Peer, Esq., chair of the Rotary Club Scholarship Committee, reviewed the three requirements to receive a Rotary scholarship. They include a strong academic background to demonstrate future success in college; financial need; and service to the community.
This year’s Rotary Club Scholarship Committee includes Chair Carl Peer, Mary Ellen O’Boyle, who has served on this committee for 28 years; Deirdre Gelinne, Heather Benz, Ray Kostyack and Lauren Barr.
Speakers at the program included Westfield Board of Education President Robert Benacchio; Rupa Motwani, representing The Westfield Foundation, who gave a summary of the Foundation’s role in the scholarship funding; and Nancy Muserlian of the Woman’s Club of Westfield. The club recently disbanded and left funds with the Rotary Club in order to administer scholarships and grants to local organizations.
Students receiving scholarships are listed as follows, along with the colleges they will attend, and the amounts and names of the scholarships.
Christopher (Max) Beriont — Fairleigh Dickinson; $7,400, Georgianna Pollack.
Shannon Gibbs — College of Brockport; $3,000, Harry Sturcke and Rotary; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
Theresa Lizzo — Vanderbilt; $10,000, Linda Read Memorial.
Madison Zemsky — Pittsburgh; $5,000, Charles and Florence Wallace; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
Adam Goddard — Emerson; $15,000, Charles and Florence Wallace.
Gianna Puglisi — George Washington; $2,500, Harry Sturcke; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
Lina Wright — Eindhoven; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
Zachary Carvalho — Lawrence Technical; $5,000, Nancy Jackson Rotary.
Rishi Shroff — Purdue; $15,000, Charles and Florence Wallace.
Maximilian Schreiner — Babson; $5,000, Nancy Jackson Rotary.
Agatha Magierski — Johns Hopkins; $15,000, Robert & Winfred Law.
Alexa Sheppard — Coastal Carolina; $5,000, William and Chester Gerdes; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
Nolan Daly — Ohio State; $5,000, Harry Sturcke.
Jillian Almendral — Boston University; $5,000, Woman’s Club.
The Rotary Club of Westfield was founded in 1921, and shortly afterwards, Mabel Smith Douglass spoke to the club about the value of educating women. She helped start and was dean of the New Jersey College for Women, later renamed Douglass College in her honor. From 1923 through 1944 the club made 400 loans to students. When the United States entered World War II, with so many people involved in the war effort, applications for loans stopped and the program ceased. After the war, the GI Bill educated eight million returning veterans for free. After the GI Bill program wrapped in 1956, the Rotary Club started the program up again, but switched the program from loans to scholarships. In 1967, the club started its “Pancake Day” fundraiser, now called “Breakfast with the Bands,” which is held every March at Westfield High School. The revenues from this fundraiser support scholarships.
In addition to the fundraisers, the club Foundation has received donations from 15 major donors. The Rotary Foundation account has approximately $2 million and is invested judiciously through the professional stewardship of the Westfield Foundation. Additionally, the Rotary Club administers several scholarships for The Westfield Foundation. In 1971, Charles Wallace asked the Rotary to administer scholarships for his estate. At that time, Rutgers’ tuition for a full year was $500, so the club issued 10 full-year scholarships to Rutgers with the Wallace Funds. This year, Wallace scholarships worth $35,000 were awarded. The Rotary Foundation also administers the Pollack Scholarship Fund, started in 1991, which is invested separately through Wells Fargo. In 2005, longtime Rotarian Harry Sturcke donated $600,000 to the Rotary Club Foundation for the purpose of scholarships and community grants. Other funds administered by Rotary and invested in the Westfield Foundation include the Gerdes Funds, Read Law and Read Health Scholarships. Both Chester Gerdes and Bob Read were longtime Rotarians and Mr. Read chaired the Rotary Scholarship Committee for many years.
The Rotary Club of Westfield meets the first three Tuesdays of each month for lunch at noon at Limáni Seafood Grill, located at 235 North Avenue West, Westfield. Guests are always welcome. For information, visit the club website, www.westfieldrotary.com, or contact Club Secretary Dr. D. Michael Hart by email at drmhart@yahoo.com.
