The Pedrozzi Foundation recently awarded $408,500 in scholarships to 112 local students. The 2017 Pedrozzi Scholars include community college, undergraduate and graduate students, eighteen percent of whom are the first in their families to attend college. These motivated and well-rounded students will be studying throughout California and across the country in the fall.
Additional scholarships were awarded this year due to the generosity of Livermore community members who funded scholarships, many in honor of peers, family members, and friends.
Howard and Elaine Storms funded an additional scholarship, this year in honor of Gene Hale, the first Pedrozzi Foundation Board President. Mr. Hale was a friend and business partner of Mario Pedrozzi who left his estate to establish the Foundation. The $11,000 Gene Hale Undergraduate Scholarship was awarded to Granada High School student Elijah Kane who plans to pursue a physics degree.
In additional to including plans in his estate to endow multiple future STEM (Science, Technology, Math and Engineering) scholarships, Pedrozzi Board Treasurer, John W. Houghton Jr. funded a current $10,000 undergraduate STEM scholarship awarded to Livermore High School student Anchal Sinha. “Supporting students now and into the future brings me great satisfaction. I am pleasantly surprised at how much fun and personally rewarding it has been to establish these scholarships. Expanding the legacy that Mario Pedrozzi left our community just feels right,” shares Houghton.
Miriam “Mim” John, retired Vice-President Sandia California, funded an additional 4-year undergraduate scholarship in memory of former Sandia employee Walter Bauer. “I was thrilled to learn that some of my former Sandia colleagues had established scholarships through the Pedrozzi Foundation in Walter Bauer’s honor. Walter, like Mario Pedrozzi, was an inspirational example of what an immigrant with drive and opportunity can accomplish. By providing these scholar-athlete scholarships to local youth, we are helping catalyze a bright future for them – and in the long run, for our community,” shares Mim. Emily Hawkins, 4-year member of both the Livermore High School varsity water polo and swim teams, was awarded the 2017 Walter Bauer Undergraduate Scholarship.
An anonymous Livermore couple recently endowed the Charles Amirkhanian Music Scholarship, which will be supporting composer Austin West as he transfers from Las Positas College to continue pursuing a music degree. These philanthropic and thoughtful community members are impressed with the Pedrozzi Foundation’s mission of creating a career and college bound culture for Livermore students, and found a match between their passion for music and philanthropic goals. They named the scholarship in honor of Charles Amirkhanian, a native Californian, composer, percussionist, sound poet and radio producer who co-founded the Other Minds Music Festival in 1992.
The Rotary Club of Livermore continued funding its Ed Rundstrom Vocational Scholarship through the Pedrozzi Foundation. Since 2005, the Club’s annual scholarship has been named in honor of educator and community leader Edwin Rundstrom. Rotary club members are proud to support students pursuing career training, such as this year’s recipient, Sadie Eldredge, whose studies will lead to a career as a radiology technologist.
Board President, Kathy Coyle funded a community college scholarship in honor and memory of her father, William Scott, and Gary Johnson funded an additional community college scholarship, awarded to Atziry Trujillo and Kyle Parsons, respectively. “Funding scholarships through the Pedrozzi Foundation is an impactful way for donors to honor someone significant in their lives and invest in Livermore students,” shares Kathy Coyle.
Since 2008, the Pedrozzi Foundation has awarded $3.6 million to almost 1,000 Livermore students. In addition to reducing their financial burden, these scholarships encourage students to dream big.
The community celebrated with the 2017 Pedrozzi Scholars at the annual Awards Recognition Event May 22 at the Bankhead Theater in Livermore.
To congratulate the new Pedrozzi Scholars and support future ones, Patxi’s Pizza, Livermore donated a portion of its May 22 proceeds to the Foundation.
