CELEBRATING A YEAR OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE
Students of DistincSPONSORED BY
tion
Megan Heerey
January 2019
Monsignor McClancy
Memorial H.S.
Forest Hills, New York
Megan Heerey exemplifi es the true
Renaissance person. She was selected
for memberships in both the National
Honor Society and the Spanish Honor
Society; attained Principal’s List status
each semester; completed several
Advance Placement courses and excelling
on their exams; and received the
American History Award.
Faculty and students selected Megan
as the Student Council President
and also acts as Student Ambassador
for incoming freshman on buddy days.
Always contributing to the school,
Megan collaborates with faculty, staff
and students for the Middle States Planning
Team.
Megan Heerey
Megan is also one of MMMHS’s
all-stars on the playing fi elds for track
and soccer. As a sprinter, she was
named: Indoor Most Valuable Athlete,
Freshman Year; Outdoor Most Valuable
Athlete, Sophomore Year and Junior
Year; and School Record Holder in the
55m Hurdles.
On the Softball Field, as Pitcher,
both she and her team received merit
for their feats, including: Freshman
Year, Perfect Game, No Hitter, MVP
Award ; CHSAA City Championship,
and Tier 2 First Team All-Star; and Tier
2 First Team All-Star. For the CHSAA,
Megan serves as Captain and won the
CHSAA City Championship, New York
My is
City Mayor’s Cup Player.
Off the fi eld Megan is a member of
the Library/Sci-Fi Club, the Yearbook
Club and Senior Leader for Freshman
Orientation. Writing is another skill
she employs with a passion, winning
Best Sports Article, “Miracle on 31st
Avenue,” by The Tablet.
Helping others is evident through
her involvement with Campus Ministry
and charitable acts. She assists at
school masses with biblical readings
and is a leader in the Clothing Drive,
Toy Drive, Coat Drive and Annual
Christmas Event at Our Lady of Sorrows.
She is Extraordinary Minister of
Holy Communion (Eucharistic Minister).
Nicolas Silva
February 2019
Middle Village Preparatory
Charter School
Middle Village, New York
Middle school years can be fraught
with worries about peer acceptance
and fi nding one’s way in a larger environment.
Nicolas Silva was nominated
student of distinction for deftly navigating
through diffi cult coursework and
increased responsibility with kindness,
grace, and academic prowess.
Whether you fi nd Nicolas on the
soccer fi eld or in the classroom, you
will fi nd him hard set at succeeding at
the task at hand. As an eighth grade
student at MVP, he earned a perfect
A+ GPA. This academic achievement
resulted in his placement in the school’s
chapter of the National Junior Honor
Society.
Teachers have praised Nicolas stating
he is an enthusiastic learner who
tackles new challenges eagerly. He is
also known as a self-motivated worker
who maintains a positive attitude.
Nuanced texts that are far beyond his
grade level have been a part of his
development into a caring young man.
These texts include S.E. Hinton’s The
Outsiders, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird,
and more contemporary The
Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls.
Several teachers note Nicolas is a
kind, helpful, and generous person by
nature. Desire to help others combined
Nicolas Silva
with dedication to and love of
soccer led him to volunteer for Samba
360, an organization that provides
disadvantaged children with donated
sports equipment. Samba 360 Founder
Shawn Brown commends Nicolas stating,
“Nicolas has volunteered with us
for the past three years. With his help,
we have collected hundreds of soccer
balls, uniforms and more for disadvantaged
children. “
Clearly Nicolas’s many skills, intelligence,
and kind spirit will lead him
forward to ever greater accomplishments.
Karolina Niepokoj
March 2019
The Mary Louis Academy
Jamaica Estates, New York
Education is a tool that allows for
greater understanding of the world. The
brightest pass this tool to others, ensuring
education continues and endures.
Karolina is among our brightest whose
endeavors shine the light of education
on many.
Karolina’s parents placed her in
Polish supplementary school, where
she became conversant in Polish.
She realized that just as her teachers
conveyed their knowledge, she could
do the same. This came to pass through
Poland’s Caritas Polska organization,
which provides international aid and
supports victims of natural disasters and
armed confl icts. While youth are not
always capable of extending monetary
aid, they are capable of impacting
others by other gifts. Karolina’s gift was
"#$%
the gift of education.
According to Bodgav Janik of Caritas,
“Karolina’s dedication of time and
utilizing her ethnic background to help
underprivileged children discover a
world of knowledge and opportunities
was a tremendous gift. The stories told
of a life in a different country opened
their eyes to the wider world.”
Furthering her interest in Poland,
Karolina volunteers digitizing documents
for the Jozef Pilsudski Institute
of America, an archive, museum,
and research center dedicated to the
preservation of Polish history. Included
among the documents scanned are
formal reports from the establishment
of the Second Polish Republic’s border,
and unique pieces, such as the original
order for the Battle of Warsaw.
Social Studies Chairperson, Kathryn
Bruen, enthuses, “She balances her experiences
with extracurricular activities,
such as holding the position of newspaper
editor, and participation in the
Forensics Club. What I fi nd amazing is
her ability to balance all of the above
and be an excellent athlete is well. She
is a valued member of both the Varsity
Track and Swimming teams.”
Karolina Niepokoj
The education of Karolina seems to
have come full circle in her young life -
from receiving to processing to giving.
As the daughter of hard-working,
productive immigrants, Karolina has
used her academic experiences to help
further the dreams of newcomers like
her parents as they move forward on
their paths toward a fruitful, brilliant
future.
!
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