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Twenty-six Steel Valley High School seniors received a $5,000 scholarship from alumnus Mr. Richard Bazzy during the district’s annual honors awards ceremony on Thursday, May 4. The Dr. Lawrence A. Griffin Senior Honor Awards Ceremony celebrates Steel Valley seniors who have maintained a minimum grade point average of 3.25 and who have been selected to receive a scholarship award from a local business, organization, alumni or community.
This is the fourth year that Mr. Bazzy, the president and owner of Shults Ford, has awarded scholarships to Steel Valley seniors, with the number of recipients growing each year. During an interview played as part of the awards ceremony, Mr. Bazzy explained that it was too difficult to choose from all of the applicants, so he decided to award a scholarship to each of them. Mr. Bazzy added that the compelling essays from students, their collective desire to make a difference in their community, and the endorsements from counselors, teachers and friends made it impossible to say no.
The Shults Ford Scholarship Fund was awarded to Ariel Mariani, Audrey Craycroft, Breanne Francis, Brendan Snyder, Brenna Kern, Brooke Farrah, Chelsea Bulger, Cody Montgomery, Dara Brown, Deanna Bird, Gabrielle Matusky, Gustav Spiker, Haley Eads, Jasmin Harris, Jasmine Wargo, Jennifer Nguyen, Kayla Bish, Kendall McConnell, Lawson Carter, Luke Vinay, Madison Blasko, Myrian Perez-Paulino, Nolan Hurd, Randy Keller and Roman Donis. The Shults Ford Trade School Scholarship Fund was awarded to Amelia Carr.
Mr. Bazzy was one of dozens of sponsors who teamed up to donate 38 distinct awards to members of the Class of 2023. The sponsors include alumni, local businesses, community organizations, and additional generous donors. Among the scholarships handed out at the ceremony was the Danyl Settles Scholarship, awarded to seniors with a record of volunteerism in the community. The $2,500 scholarship was awarded to both Chelsea Bulger and Nolan Hurd. Madison Blasko was the recipient of the Healthy UN School Award, a $2,000 scholarship for students who bring awareness to health and wellness topics.
Brenna Kern received the Best of the Batch Book Stipend, a $1,500 award from Homestead native and Steel Valley graduate Charlie Batch’s Best of the Batch Foundation. Steel Valley alumnus Luke Getsy, currently the offensive coordinator for the NFL’s Chicago Bears, and his wife Tina awarded a $10,000 scholarship to Myrian Perez-Paulino.
Class of 1988 graduate Ms. Harriet Freeman-Jackson served as the guest speaker for the ceremony. Now the Safe Routes to School Coordinator for the City of Pittsburgh, Ms. Freeman-Jackson shared her journey from Steel Valley to WAMO-FM to non-profit work and encouraged the students to pursue their passions. Senior class president Gabrielle Matusky welcomed the attendees, while valedictorian Brenna Kern thanked the parents, teachers, administrators and sponsors for their support, guidance and generosity.
The Steel Valley School District would like to thank the following award sponsors and extend a warm congratulations to all of the recipients below.
Annual School Board Graduating Senior Award
Breanne Francis
Joseph R. Havrilla Citizenship Award
Brendan Snyder
Valedictorian Award
Brenna Kern
Scholar/Athlete Award
Brenna Kern
Luke Vinay
SVEA Teacher Scholarship
Kendall McConnell
Tribute to Veterans Memorial Day Award
Deanna Bird
Roger “Butch” Pratt Memorial Award
Brian Versetti
Myrian Perez-Paulino
Betty Hogg Memorial Award
Chelsea Bulger
Homestead District Lions Club Award
Brenna Kern
Chelsea Bulger
Lions Club Community Award
Jennifer Nguyen
Homestead District Lions Scholarship Award
Brendan Snyder
Drew Martin Memorial & Scholarship Fund
Breanne Francis
Connor Brady
Maria Bajus Heddleston Memorial Scholarship
Ariel Mariani
Charlton Award
Randy Keller
Garden Club of Munhall Scholarship
Brooke Farrah
Green Funeral Home Essay Award
Gabrielle Matusky
Randy Keller
Steel Valley Rotary Club Award
Breanne Francis
Jacquelyn Konop-Buckley Memorial Scholarship
Breanne Francis
Susan Satriano Memorial Scholarship
Connor Brady
Dara Brown
Carmen Marini Memorial Tuition Scholarship
Dara Brown
Randy Keller
Jack Kelly Memorial Scholarship
Breanne Francis
Betty Davis Scholarship
Luke Vinay
Randy Zirkle Memorial Scholarship
Brooke Farrah
Geri Palmieri Memorial Scholarship
Kendall McConnell
Helen Laughran Memorial Nursing Scholarship
Amelia Carr
Bernard “Dan” Pishinsky Annual Math/Comp Sci Scholarship
Randy Keller
The Mayor Bodnar & Jane D. Bodnar Memorial Scholarship
Breanne Francis
Brendan Snyder
Danyl Settles Scholarship
Chelsea Bulger
Nolan Hurd
Healthy UN School Award
Madison Blasko
Best of Batch Book Stipend
Brenna Kern
Luke & Tina Getsy Scholarship
Myrian Perez-Paulino
Nancy B. Scholarship
Lawson Carter
Chau Scholarship Award
Gabrielle Matusky
Lance-Weems Memorial Scholarship
Jasmin Harris
St. Vincent College Award
Kendall McConnell
Nolan Hurd
The Russ Gibbons/Dave Demerest Scholarship
Ariel Mariani
Richard Bazzy’s Shults Ford Trade School Scholarship Fund
Amelia Carr
Richard Bazzy’s Shults Ford Scholarship Fund
Ariel Mariani
Audrey Craycroft
Breanne Francis
Brendan Snyder
Brenna Kern
Brooke Farrah
Chelsea Bulger
Cody Montgomery
Dara Brown
Deanna Bird
Gabrielle Matusky
Gustav Spiker
Haley Eads
Jasmin Harris
Jasmine Wargo
Jennifer Nguyen
Kayla Bish
Kendall McConnell
Lawson Carter
Luke Vinay
Madison Blasko
Myrian Perez-Paulino
Nolan Hurd
Randy Keller
Roman Donis
