HVGCC Announces Scholarship Recipients

The Hudson Valley's leading business leaders were on hand today to recognize six area high school students and present each of them with $1,000 scholarships at the Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce Annual Scholarship Awards Breakfast held at The Garrison, in Garrison, NY.

Graduating High School students from Croton-Harmon, Hendrick Hudson, Lakeland, Peekskill, Putnam Valley and Walter Panas high schools were on hand to receive their scholarships. Proud parents attended as well.

“At today's scholarship breakfast, I might have been sitting next to the future president, the doctor who finds a way to repair spinal cord injuries or a future Pulitzer prize winning author. These outstanding young men and women are the business and community leaders of tomorrow and it is essential that we support their educational endeavors today,” said Deborah Milone, Executive Director, Hudson Valley Gateway Chamber of Commerce.

Recipients are selected on the basis of academic record, leadership, extracurricular activities in school, volunteerism in the community, honors or awards and work experience. Awards are determined by the chamber scholarship committee on a non-discriminatory basis.

Honored for their academic and civic achievements were:

Julia Albrecht, Croton Harmon High School. Albrecht is fluent in French and plans to attend Cornell University and major in mechanical engineering and minor in biomedical engineering. Upon graduation, Albrecht plans to “work for an engineering firm that designs prosthetic devices that are both technologically advanced and aesthetically innovative” so that “amputees have the chance to comfortably participate in sports and daily life,” according to her essay.

Geoffrey Quist, Hendrick Hudson School. Quist is used to overcoming challenges since birth, including surviving open hear surgery at just one week old. Quist, an Eagle Scout, wrote in his essay, “I never gave up and I made it my goal in life to take the second chance I was given and use it to my advantage, living my life to the fullest both physically and mentally.” Quist will be attending Mount St. Mary's.

Anthony Occhiogrosso, Lakeland High School. “Whether I become a doctor, engineer, or a professional underwater basket weaver, this scholarship will provide me with the financial means that I need to fulfill my goals and one day make the world a better place, one patient at a time,” he wrote in his scholarship essay. Occhiogrosso, along with his delightful sense of written humor, will be attending The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and plans on following a pre-med track with a double major in chemistry and biology. He plans on becoming a neurosurgeon.

Paige Hill, Peekskill High School. Hill wants to be President of the United States someday. Sounding more like a current day politician running for office, Hill wrote in her essay, “I hope to start small and leave a significant impact on my hometown by helping people in need, cleaning up red tape and procedures and making the government more transparent and accessible to the public.” Hill will be studying American History/Political Science at Temple University in order to prepare for her career as Commander-in-Chief.

Andrulisa Jones, Putnam Valley High School. Jones plans on being a doctor to help people with chronic pain or debilitating diseases. She wrote in her essay, “I will be a doctor who forms special relationships with my patients. Through such profound connections with my patients, I can aid in their healing process, on both mental and physical grounds.” Jones plans on studying Biochemistry at the University of Buffalo.

Emma Haviland-Blunk, Walter Panas High School. Writing is Haviland-Blunk's passion. Haviland-Blunk wrote in her essay that she is interested in a career in publishing or may want to be a “conflict mediator, college professor, or international consultant; it’s also possible my particular career hasn’t been fully invented yet.” She will be attending Swarthmore College.

A portion of the proceeds from the Chamber’s fall golf outing is dedicated to funding the annual scholarships. This is the eighth year that the chamber has distributed scholarships to deserving high school students within its service area. In total, the chamber has provided $48,000 in scholarships to local college-bound students. The chamber represents more than 440 businesses in Cortlandt, Croton-on-Hudson, Peekskill, Buchanan, Putnam Valley and the surrounding area.