Lynbrook HS Students Receive $115,000 in Local Scholarships at Senior Awards Night

Story by Rosemary Leonetti.

Lynbrook pride was evident in all its green and gold glory, as family and friends gathered to salute the accomplishments of graduates of the Class of 2013 at Lynbrook High School’s annual Senior Awards Night.

Students received a total of approximately $115,000 in scholarship awards, including $20,000 worth of scholarships that were made possible through the generosity of the Lynbrook PTA Scholarship Fund. Students were recognized not only for their exceptional academic accomplishments, but also for exhibiting exemplary leadership, citizenship and commitment to service in the Lynbrook community.

"I want to thank the individuals, groups and families in attendance this evening for coming out to honor the fine students from Lynbrook’s Class of 2013 at this celebration of their academic achievement and commitment to their community," said Principal Joseph Rainis in his opening remarks.

The PTA scholarships, presented by Lynbrook Council of PTAs co-presidents Lois Kemp and Suzanne DiBenedetto, were awarded to Damian Andreani, Madeline Baloglou, Austin Bell, Joelle Church, Joao Cueto, Gavin Dowd, Angel Huang, Sadqa Jamal, Emilee Laike, Allison Licciardi, Luis Mejia, Saul Parra, Jenny Reed, Paige Sorbara and Jeremy Tamayo.             

Lynbrook Board of Education President Catherine Papandrew and Vice President William Kayen presented the Peter Kostynick Scholarships to Maxwell Brown, Zoe Daniels, Erica DeMichiel, Matthew DeMichiel, Melissa Epstein, Dana Fader, SoEun Lee, Julia Marrandino, Stephanie Mertz, Angela Schickling, Samantha Sitt, Brandon Skordas, Nicolai Tayco, Olivia Watman and Brandon Wong.             

The Lynbrook Chamber of Commerce Community Service Awards were presented to Sarah Gebbia, Gina Girardi and Joseph Lilly. In other notable community-based awards, Maggie Neal was named the Historical Society of East Rockaway and Lynbrook Heritage Scholar.

Alexandra Brittman, Charley Lanter and Jessica Magagnos received scholarships from Long Island Blood Services. Rae Saltzman Scholarships went to Emilee Laike, Allison Licciardi, Julianne Risorto and Alejandra Sanchez.

Morty Frank Memorial Scholarships were awarded to Damian Andreani, Bianca Bigit, Jesse Bua, Michael Cantanno, Joelle Church, Thomas Duignan, Matthew Ellentuck, Nicholas LoCicero and Julia Marrandino.

The Lynbrook Teachers’ Association Awards for Academic Excellence went to Caitlin Buschinski, Lauren Caliendo, Noah Chrein, Jamie Collins, Giuseppe Condoleo, Erica DeMichiel, Russell Doloboff, Brian Donaldson, Sarah Gebbia, Jonathan Kaszuba and Stephanie Mertz.

For the first time this year, Friends of Lynbrook Robotics Scholarships were presented to Ryan Barrison, Noah Chrein, Austin Meersand, Zachary Proefriedt and Brandon Wong.

In one of the most touching moments of the evening, the Santo J. Barbarino “Owls of Excellence” Scholarship, which was created by the Lynbrook Teachers Association to honor the memory of past Superintendent Dr. Santo Barbarino, was presented to Alexandra Brittman. Dr. Barbarino’s brother Al was on hand to present the award.