On April 12th, members of the Chappaqua community gathered at Whippoorwill Country Club to support the Horace Greeley Scholarship Fund (HGSF) and celebrate this year’s honorees at the organization’s annual Spring Benefit. This year, HGSF honored Jim Sarris and Fran Flamino, two individuals who have made an incredible difference both in Chappaqua’s schools and the greater community.
The Horace Greeley Scholarship Fund, officially founded in 1965, is a volunteer-run organization dedicated to funding college grants for Greeley graduates. Julianne Metzger, President of HGSF, explains their mission as “seeking to fill the gap between a student and their family’s other financial aid, government grants and scholarships from the school, and what the family can pay.” The organization takes applications from both current Greeley seniors and recent Greeley graduates, and awards grants based only on an individual’s financial need. The process and the people involved are kept entirely confidential.
“The Spring Benefit is our largest fundraiser of the year,” Ms. Metzger explains. “Historically we have had a cocktail party and dinner event where we honor two members of our community, we highlight a student grant recipient, and we celebrate our mission and our work. We hope to educate the people who join us in how important our work is, so they continue to be supporters.”
One of the two awards given out at the event is the Ed Habermann Award. This award was created in partnership with the Horace Greeley Scholarship Fund by Susan Habermann, Dr. Habermann’s wife. It was established to honor a member of the community who embodies Dr. Habermann’s spirit and dedication to the Greeley community. This year, the Scholarship Fund honored Horace Greeley Spanish teacher James Sarris, who has worked at Greeley since 1997. Sophomore Jenna Blum said that she believes Mr. Sarris is “deserving of this award because of his great sense of humor and patience with his students. He represents what an excellent teacher should look like and makes classes enjoyable and educational. He always ensures everyone knows and understands what is being taught and makes his lessons engaging.”
On top of his work in the classroom, Mr. Sarris also takes groups of students to Spain every year. “He organizes and chaperones a trip where he takes kids over school breaks to Spain and exposes them to a really relaxed and immersive experience that they wouldn’t otherwise have,” Julianne Metzger explains, adding that this is among the many reasons he is being honored. “He is a teacher who enhances [his] students’ educational experience.”
When Mr. Sarris was told about the award, he was extremely touched. “I know that there are many, many teachers in this school who are deserving,” he is quick to say. “The idea that it was me caught me completely by surprise. I was honored.” Mr. Sarris is a big admirer of HGSF and its mission. “The idea that students can access a fund is tremendous.”
The second award given out was the Taylor Family Award of Distinction, which honors a community member who has displayed consistent dedication, volunteerism, and service to Greeley’s students, and inspires and encourages others to volunteer their time as well. This year’s honoree is Fran Flamino, who currently serves as the coordinator of Continuing Education and Driver Education, and whose devotion and service to the Greeley community stretches back almost 20 years. Ms. Metzger explains that, in the decision process, they decided to honor Ms. Flamino because “she is very good at fundraising and she is very passionate about helping students in the district. She does an unusual amount of work and made a major contribution to our community in the many years she has lived here. We were so eager to honor her with this award.”
Like her co-honoree, Mr. Sarris, Ms. Flamino was also deeply touched by the award, “I cried,” she explains. “There are so many people that do so many amazing things for the Chappaqua Community, I was so honored and flattered that the Horace Greeley Scholarship Fund chose me. I feel blessed.” In addition to being honored, she has also served on the HGSF Board and greatly admires the work that they do. “I can’t think of anything better in life than helping a Greeley student achieve the dream of a college education. It has been an honor to serve on the HGSF Board for seven years. I loved working with the Chappaqua community to help cover the cost of college. This is a wonderful example of neighbors helping neighbors.”
Although the gala was held on April 12th, attending was not the only way for one to show their support— congratulate Mr. Sarris and Ms. Flamino if you see them in the Greeley halls!