| MATTHEW KATO 2006 MEMORIAL ART SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Krista Vierthaler, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for art. MATTHEW KATO 2006 MEMORIAL SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Toni Smith, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for science. MATTHEW KATO 2006 MEMORIAL DWI SCHOLARSHIP $500 to Christi Cole, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District. Awarded to a selected student who submitted an essay on the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/ or drugs. |
| Giving back to the community |
Matthew Kato Foundation
Raising Awareness about the impacts of drinking and driving
| MATTHEW KATO 2007 MEMORIAL ART SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Kasey Nichols ,must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for art. MATTHEW KATO 2007 MEMORIAL SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Peter O'Brien,must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for science. MATTHEW KATO 2007 MEMORIAL DWI SCHOLARSHIP $1,000 to Ysanya Perez This year a special Scholarship was awarded based on a Photography project created by Ysanya, a student at RIT (No DWI essays were submitted in 2007) |
| 2005 Scholarships All DWI Essays Submitted 2005 - 2007 |
| MATTHEW KATO 2008 MEMORIAL ART SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Sarah VandenBos, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for art. MATTHEW KATO 2008 MEMORIAL SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIP $250 Kelsey Sanderl, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for science. MATTHEW KATO 2008 MEMORIAL DWI SCHOLARSHIP Two scholarships, each $500 to Kelly Barone and Kathryn E. Mercadel. Must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District. Awarded to a selected student who submitted an essay on the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/ or drugs |
| MATTHEW KATO 2005 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP (ART) $1,000 to Harold Hillyard and Tina LaRussa, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for art. MATTHEW KATO 2005 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP (SCIENCE) $1,000 to Teresa Baybutt and Mark Smith, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for science. MATTHEW KATO 2005 MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP $1,000 to Marci Bruno, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District. Awarded to a selected student who submitted an essay on the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/ or drugs. Good evening. My name is Bernadette Kato and this is my husband Paul. We are pleased to be here tonight to present scholarships to a total of 5 students. Each will receive $1000. These scholarships are given in the spirit of our son, Matthew Kato. Matthew would have been a graduating senior this year had his life not been cut short by the carelessness of a drunk driver on July 21, 2004. I know he is pleased with the choices that have been made with the assistance of the Art, Science and Counseling Departments. Matthew was an intelligent and talented young man who was highly interested in the study of science and art. These subjects came easily to him and he led a passionate pursuit of knowledge in both. When considering the rules of eligibility for the scholarships we decided to forgo the route of the student needing a certain GPA. Matthew was never concerned about his grades (even though we were)! We were unaware of the “behind the scenes” relationships he had with many of his peers. His life was not based on scores or being tough. He seemed to concentrate more on helping people to see that life held hope and promise. He wanted each person to know they are loved and believed in their ability to triumph over adversity. ART: Matthew spent a lot of his time sketching. He had a collection of books that a budding cartoonist or illustrator would use as reference. He was always the first one picked when choosing teams for a rousing game of Pictionary at family gatherings. He truly was the quickest draw in the east!! The first 2 scholarships are being given to one male and one female graduating senior who, like Matthew, demonstrated a passion for Art. The scholarships are awarded to TINA LARUSSA and HAROLD HILLYARD. Science: Matthew loved science since he was a young child. As his parents, we have many fond memories of reading and learning together about all of the creatures of the world and the mysteries of the universe. We visited science museums and aquariums in many cities. Had we allowed it, our house would have been filled with every kind of pet imaginable, except for spiders. He hated spiders. When he was younger he would scream like a girl and run. As a young man he got braver and let out a samurai warrior cry before squashing the 8 legged creature with a tissue and flushed it. The Matthew Kato Memorial Scholarship for Science is given to one female and one male graduating senior who demonstrate a passion for science. The scholarships are awarded to TERESA BAYBUTT and MARK SMITH. DWI ESSAY: The last scholarship we offer is to a graduating senior who, based on an essay, can demonstrate an understanding of the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and /or drugs. 14 essays were submitted, making the task to choose just one difficult. The essays were well written, informative, passionate, and honest. These young adults show a great understanding of the social ills that reside in our community. Their insight is beyond their years. This left me with a feeling of hope for future generations. Their wisdom will carry on and become greater with passing years. The recipient of tonight’s scholarship submitted an essay that was well thought out with not only statistics relating to DWI research data and knowledge of NYS laws, but was written with a vision of how to move forward, w/ suggestions to raise awareness and change laws to deter future tragedies like that of Matthew’s death. The essay described her personal grief over the loss of a friend and her continued healing. The scholarship is awarded to MARCI BRUNO. |
| MATTHEW KATO 2009 MEMORIAL ART SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Dennis McCorry, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for art. MATTHEW KATO 2009 MEMORIAL SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIP $250 to Nigel Brown-Ward, must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District with a strong passion for science. MATTHEW KATO 2009 MEMORIAL DWI SCHOLARSHIP $500 to Allison Knothe. must be a graduating senior residing in the Rush-Henrietta Central School District. Awarded to a selected student who submitted an essay on the dangers of driving under the influence of alcohol and/ or drugs |
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