The Tri-County Scholarship Fund celebrated an inspiring night of philanthropy with more than 800 guests at its 43rd Annual Awards Dinner, held on Oct. 28 at The Legacy Castle in the Pompton Plains neighborhood of Pequannock.
The event raised $2.2 million to provide scholarships for financially disadvantaged k–12 grade students in northern New Jersey so they can attend better, safer, values-based schools. Most of these schools are part of the Paterson Diocese.
Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, a Tri-County board member, started the evening by blessing students, supporters, and honorees. He praised Tri-County’s work in providing life-changing scholarships to students in financial need.
For the current 2024–25 school year, TCSF has awarded 900 k–12th grade scholarships.
“The funds raised at this year’s awards dinner will enable us to lift even more deserving students off our 1500-student scholarship waiting list, giving them a quality education and the hope for a brighter future,” said Prudence Pigott, Tri-County president.
The awards dinner honored three outstanding business leaders with the Hall of Fame award. They were Vincent C. Tizzio, president and CEO of AXIS; Robert Cohen, chairman of the board of N.J. Institute of Technology and president of digital, robotics, and enabling technologies at Stryker; and Brendan Coughlin, vice-chair and head of consumer banking at Citizens.
Each honoree was celebrated for his commitment to making a difference in his community and for his leadership in fostering educational opportunity.
The featured student speaker was Cartier, a junior at DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne who was born in Paterson. For sharing his story, he received Tri-County’s annual Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney Scholarship.
Cartier spoke of his personal and financial challenges and how receiving a Tri-County scholarship changed his life.
“I am grateful for the scholarships from Tri-County that have allowed me to attend DePaul Catholic. DePaul has shown me new possibilities for my life. I now have goals for the person I am trying to become, for the man I will become,” Cartier said.
Since its founding in 1981, Tri-County has provided more than $38 million in partial scholarships to financially disadvantaged children in Morris, Passaic, and Sussex counties.
To view speeches and photos from the gala, visit www.tcsfund.org/2024gala. For more information about Tri-County and how to contribute, visit www.tcsfund.org
