On Thursday, October 15th, Futures in Education, the scholarship fund of the Diocese of Brooklyn, hosted its annual Scholarship Fund Dinner at the Grand Ballroom of The Waldorf Astoria New York in Manhattan. The event raised an overall of $2.3 million in scholarships for the deserving students of low-income families of Brooklyn and Queens to attend Catholic elementary schools and academies, overpassing the record set last year of $2.2 million.
“When you save one soul, you save the whole world. This is the same, we are working one child at a time. Thanks to God we are able to help nearly 6,000 deserving students with scholarships to stay in our schools,” said the Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, during the event.
The dinner is the biggest annual event of the non-profit organization, which welcomed over 800 guests and featured speeches by Bishop DiMarzio and Monsignor Jamie Gigantiello, Vicar for Development of the Diocese of Brooklyn. It also shared the testimony of Mayra Depena, the mother of a student of Salve Regina Catholic Academy in East New York who has benefited from Futures in Education’s scholarship programs. The night presented performances by students from Saint Mark Catholic Academy, tenor Daniel Rodriguez and singer Stephanie Hanvey. The Mistress of Ceremonies was the award-winning reporter Juliet Papa from the local radio station 1010WINS.
This year’s fundraiser honored Louis C. Grassi, CPA, CFE President and CEO of Grassi & Co., and Louis S. Milo, President of Milrose Consultants. John A. Loconsolo, Executive President of Locon Realty Corp., was awarded with the Lifetime Achievement Award for being an Angel to 70 deserving students, Future’s sponsoring program that helps subsidize the cost of tuition, in addition to his dedicated commitment with Futures in Educations since its inception.
Futures in Education, the scholarship fund of the Diocese of Brooklyn, is celebrating 25 years of supporting low-income families through partial needs-based scholarships, having awarded more than $50 million over the last seven years alone. Futures in Education strives to ensure that the gift of Catholic education continues to be a viable option for current and future generations of deserving students in Brooklyn and Queens. For more information visit www.futuresineducation.org.
