North Jersey Chapter Scholarship Winners
2012 Memorial Scholarship Winners
This year the North Jersey 99’s awarded two scholarships.
The Dodie Riach Scholarship, was first awarded in 1996. Dodie and her son David perished in his Piper Dakota as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning from a large hole in the exhaust system.
Gabrielle Disanza is 18 years old. Her first flight was at the age of three years old. Her uncle who is now a Captain for Fed Ex in the MD11 took her up for her first flight in a Cessena 172. She continued to fly with him on numerous trips, lunch at Sky Manor or Blairstown and sometimes to Ocean City to spend the day at the beach. Finally last Spring she decided she no longer wanted to be a passenger. She began her training at Solberg Airport in July 2011 and 6 months later on January 16th 2012 she earned her private pilot license. Gabrielle plans on earning her Instrument rating, eventually obtaining her Commercial rating then possibly training to be a CFII.
Gabrielle is currently at Verity Institute and is enrolled in an accelerated scholastic program which will enable her to achieve her degree in Music. She currently has 3.96 GPA with the Master's College.
Nick Chieco is the winner of the Lillien Ziemba Scholarship,
The Memorial scholarships would not be available if it were not for the generosity of other pilots, people in aviation, and the general public, who not only donate privately, but also through the support of our annual fund raisers. Thank you everyone for your generosity over the years in giving what you can to the scholarship fund. Without you, these three people, and all the other recipients, would not have been able to live their dreams!