Our Grantees
Andreas Spentzos
Andy loves life! His personality shows a fiery spirit and a deep inner pride that opts to win and prevail. He is not afraid to wear his emotions on his sleeve and let his big heart steer the way. His vision of great possibility in life started at a young age in the south side of Chicago where he witnessed violence and poor habits of living. Rather than blame others and society for the misfortunes he experienced, he chose to apply himself in school and create his own success. His sense of humor is never far away and his tenacious approach has helped him excel in sports and academics at Seton Hall University, where he will be a junior in the fall. He is currently completing an NBA Summer Internship program in New York City.
Daniel Ndamwizeye
Words cannot give credit to Daniel's truly heroic story of survival. His remarkable journey of determination, forgiveness, love and peace embodies the highest level of the human capacity to overcome the worst of life's hardships. At age 5 Daniel witnessed the death of his mother and discovered his father had been burned to death during the genocide in Rwanda during the 1990s. The remaining family members fled and lost contact for years as Daniel struggled with more pain and suffering at the hands of an abusive foster family in Africa. Mention of the family name one day during a priest's sermon began a long process of searching and assistance with the best possible outcome: Daniel was reunited in the United States with his two remaining sisters. His accomplishments have been stellar since his arrival in the U.S. He was Vice President of his senior class, captain of the volleyball team and he is a member of the National Honor Society. We are honored to help support this young hero and rejoice in his new future as a freshman at Southern Connecticut State University.
Joseph Al-Shanniek
Joseph is a young man with extraordinary qualities of character. At age 21, he exemplifies extraordinary maturity, leadership and a sense of responsibility to mankind. He entered the foster care system at 7 years old and led a fragmented home life for several years. At age 12, he moved to a foster care facility in New York that provided strong mentorship, excellent academics, and camaraderie with his peers. Joseph's natural compassion and unyielding focus to lead and do the best he can will truly make him a model citizen. This summer Joseph traveled to Turkey on a religious and international studies program and upon his return will complete a Congressional Summer Internship in Washington DC. In the fall Joseph will be a senior at Boston College.