Awards Committee Chair Dawn Egan presented the 2024 Kiwanis Club of Weston Foundation Weston High School Youth Awards at the club’s breakfast meeting on Saturday, June 22, 2024.

Recipients’ friends and families joined to recognize these youth with impressive qualifications. Pictured above are Gabriel Escandon, Marissa Russo, Valentina Fonseca Grossmann, Caroline Saussy, and Awards Committee Chair, Past President, and the Kiwanis Key Club Advisor Dawn Egan. Not pictured: Gianna Tomanelli.

KIWANIS COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD

The Kiwanis Community Service Award has been awarded to two amazing young people – Gabriel Escandon and Gianna Tomanelli. This award was established in 1976 and recognizes students for their outstanding service and leadership in our community.

Gianna and her family let me know right away that they were traveling for a family wedding and that they were very grateful and honored for this award. You may all remember that we honored Gianna’s sister, Mia, last year. It is certainly apparent that volunteerism is of high value to the Tomanelli family. 

The second recipient is also a face that you may recognize. 

Gabriel Escandon is a senior at Weston High School and is honored to receive this award. 

As an advanced placement student, Gabriel values academics highly and has volunteered a great deal of his time tutoring students in mathematics and the physical sciences. In addition to academics, Gabriel serves as a defense attorney for the Mock Trial team, captain of the debate team, and secretary general of the Model United Nations club, all of which allow him to leverage his public speaking capabilities. 

As the president of the National Spanish Honor Society, Gabriel makes measurable efforts to promote Hispanic culture in Weston. He also serves as a captain of the Boy’s Swim and Dive Team, which placed first at the Connecticut Class S State Championship this past winter. 

Perhaps most importantly, Gabriel has served as the treasurer for Weston High School’s Key Club these past two years. He has dedicated his time to numerous volunteer efforts in Weston and has worked to expand volunteer opportunities for club members. 

This autumn, he will leave for the University of Chicago, where he will continue to challenge himself academically and intellectually.

DIANE MARY HUSTON SCHULTZ MEMORIAL AWARD

The Diane Mary Huston Schultz Memorial Award was presented to Valentina Fonseca Grossmann.

Like all the exceptional students being recognized today, Valentina is unique and has many achievements. However, she stands out not just for being a Principal’s Honor Roll student and a member of the French Honors Society and the Art Honors Society. It’s her essence as an individual, and the journey she’s undertaken that truly shines.

Valentina’s story is one of resilience and transformation. At the age of 10, she embarked on a journey to a new country, where she not only learned to navigate through a foreign culture but also mastered not one but two new languages. Amidst the challenges of adapting to a new life, she never lost sight of her passion for helping others and making a positive impact on the world.

What sets Valentina apart is not just her several hours of volunteering work but the depth of her spirit. She embodies the essence of empathy, always extending a helping hand and building genuine connections wherever she goes.

Despite early doubts about her own abilities, Valentina found expression in the world of art. Through her intricate drawings and vibrant creations, she doesn’t just capture the world around her; she invites us into her inner thoughts and emotions, revealing a beauty that might otherwise go unnoticed.

She reminds us that true success isn’t just measured by laurels but by the lives we touch and the hearts we inspire. We trust there’s much more to come, and she will continue to illuminate the world with her unique vision and unwavering determination.

KIWANIS SUPERINTENDENT’S SCHOLARSHIP AWARD

The Kiwanis Superintendent’s Scholarship Award was created in 2001 in memory of Dr. Janet Shaner and her commitment to education. The award recognizes a student who intends to major in a field of education and/or enjoys working with children.

This year, the award goes to Marissa Russo.

Marisa has always been a passionate learner, but her enthusiasm for teaching was sparked on a family trip to Laos for the dedication of a school built in memory of her late great-aunt, who was a math teacher. Seeing the young students at the school so excited to learn in their new building made Marisa realize the value of equity and access to education, and she grew to appreciate the opportunities she has had.

Marisa has a passion for working with children of all ages, as evidenced by much of the extra- and co-curricular work she has done throughout her high school career. She served as President of Top-Hat Tutors, a student-run tutoring organization serving Westport and Weston. In this role, she interviewed, hired, and managed student tutors, as well as maintained a steady client base of her own over the last two school years. She tutors students ranging from 5th through 10th grade in math and chemistry. Marisa takes the time to get to know her students’ strengths and challenges, as well as the ways they learn best and uses this knowledge to plan her approach to each session. 

During her senior year, Marisa worked as an aide for the WHS science department. In this role, she maintained chemical inventory, helped set up and break down lab equipment, and acted as a teacher aide in chemistry and physics classes. The science teachers at WHS report that she was an invaluable asset to the department over the past year, as they knew they could rely on Marisa to help students in the classroom on an individual and small group basis and that her content knowledge was excellent.

Marisa just completed her senior internship, after which she returned to her middle school to work with her 7th-grade math teacher. There, she was tasked with working with small groups of students on a regular basis, developing review materials for the final exam, and even doing some collaborative lesson planning and implementation with her mentor teacher. Her mentor teacher reported that she is a natural teacher!

Marisa was a captain of the WHS Volleyball team last fall and played club volleyball in the winter and spring. She is a member of the National Honor Society as well as Link Crew at WHS, and outside of school has been a Girl Scout for 13 years. Marisa and her mom are also members of the National Charity League – a mother-daughter philanthropy organization, for which they have each volunteered over 150 hours of time to a variety of philanthropies over the last six years.

In the summer months, Marisa enjoys lifeguarding children’s parties and giving swim and volleyball lessons, as well as playing in grass volleyball tournaments on the weekends. 

Marisa will attend Wake Forest University in the fall, where she plans to pursue her interests in math and science education.

DAVID BROWN MEMORIAL AWARD

The recipient of the David Brown Memorial Award is Caroline Saussy.

The club created this award after Dave died in 2001. The award recognizes a student who has demonstrated the qualities best representative of Mr. Brown and is:

• a visible and committed supporter of the Weston High School athletic program 
• a positive role model who demonstrates respect, loyalty, and sportsmanship
• a school community member with an exemplary record of service for others.