$100,000 in Scholarships Awarded to Students

50 Local Students Each Receive $2,000 for the Academic Year

For Immediate Release
Contact: Ronald Wertz
VP-Director of Marketing
860.446.3254

Waterford, CT – June 7, 2023 – Charter Oak Federal Credit Union hosted a reception on Tuesday, June 6th to formally award $100,000 in scholarships to 50 deserving high school and college students from the New London and Windham counties.

These students were chosen by a committee that reviewed over 160 applications to their 2023 Community Giving Scholarship Program. Students were required to submit a detailed essay to demonstrate their commitment to their scholarly efforts, as well as to showcase how they plan to give back to their local community. Topics included improving local park and recreation centers, creating services for the homeless population, providing support to families who are dealing with tragic loss, as well as creating/helping food pantries within the region.

“Since starting the Scholarship Program in 2009, we’ve given over $900,000 in scholarships,” said Laurie Cormier, Charter Oak’s Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources and Marketing Officer. “The impressive group of students demonstrated their understanding of the importance of community service, which strongly aligns with the Credit Union’s beliefs” she said.

Congratulations to the following 2023 Community Outreach Scholarship Winners!

This year’s high school student scholarship winners (sorted by school) are: Andrew Darling, Bacon Academy; Nikhita Bolineni, East Lyme High School; Kenya Greene, East Lyme High School; Owen Griswold, Ella T. Grasso Technical High School; Jackson Collins, Griswold High School; Amanda Wrobel, Griswold High School; Zoe Miller, Killingly High School; Carley DiMartino, Killingly High School; Isabella Rowan, Ledyard High School; Grace Walenczyk, Ledyard High School; Livie Bass, Lyme-Old Lyme High School; Alexis Fenton, Lyme-Old Lyme High School; Gracie Davidson, Marine Science Magnet High School; Sarah Tarinelli, Marine Science Magnet High School; Kelsey Beaupre, Montville High School; Matthew Malbaurn, Montville High School; Hildalyn Joran, New London Multi Magnet High School; Kmara Royster, New London Visual and Performing Arts Multi Magnet High School; William Ambruso, Norwich Free Academy; Ethan McMahon, Norwich Free Academy; Zachary Tomaszek, Norwich Technical High School; Alana Gercic, Plainfield High School; Maya Gerum, Pomfret School; Jacob Mailloux, Putnam High School; Emily St. Martin, Putnam High School; Aurora Clinton, Robert E. Fitch High School; Luca Ursini, Robert E. Fitch High School; Alyssa Lazarou, Saint Bernard High School; Dominic Robinson, Saint Bernard High School; Jacob Bundesmann, Stonington High School; Rachel Fretard, Stonington High School; Diya Patel, Stonington High School; Anika Garg, The Williams School; Reese Gendreau, Tourtellotte Memorial High School; Emily Bergamo, Waterford High School; Emma DeVito, Waterford High School; Jordan Dunkerley, Waterford High School; Benjamin Nave, Wheeler High School; Broderick Belanger, Windham Technical High School; Madison Bates, Woodstock Academy; Ella Rose Musumeci, Woodstock Academy.

College award winners include: Clayton Singleton, Clark University; Meghan Wrobel, Eastern Connecticut State University; Silas Gates, Iona University; Nydesja Pearson, Morgan State University; Luisanny Castillo, Providence College; Hannah Nicholson, Salve Regina
University; Alyssa Miner, Three Rivers Community College; Emma Larson, Three Rivers Community College; Luke Kindel, Three Rivers Community College. Charter Oak awards scholarships on an annual basis and will begin accepting applications again in January 2024 for the 2024-2025 school year. To learn more about the Credit Union’s scholarship program, please visit: CharterOak.org.

Charter Oak is eastern Connecticut’s largest credit union with assets of $1.52 billion as of September 30, 2023. For more information about Charter Oak’s broad range of products and services, please visit any of our convenient branches, call our Contact Center at 860.446.8085 or visit CharterOak.org. Federally insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Lender. Charter Oak Federal Credit Union is like a bank, just better! We’ve been proudly serving eastern Connecticut since 1939 and we offer great checking, deposit, lending, insurance and investment products. And because we’re a credit union, we’re owned by our members, not by shareholders. So we can offer lower rates on loans and higher rates on deposits. It’s easy to become a Charter Oak member: simply live, work, worship, learn, or volunteer in New London or Windham counties. So join today and see why Members Bank Better at Charter Oak.