Toms River Mayor Thomas Kelaher, Police Chief Mitchell Little, and the entire Council recently awarded scholarships for seven local high school students. On April 26th, at a public council meeting, the two men handed out the awards to the graduating seniors in amounts ranging from $500 to $1,500 each. Many of the students participated in the Toms River Schools TEAM program. TEAM stands for Together Everyone Achieves More. It is a school sponsored civic and service organization.
The money was raised through the efforts of the annual Jingle Bell Run, a 5-K charity race that is held each December. This past year saw over 600 race participants. The race is coordinated by former Toms River Police Lieutenant James Everett for the benefit of the Toms River Police Foundation. The foundation was set up to aid police officers and their families as well as to contribute to programs for local youth. The foundation also makes funding available to eligible scholarship applicants. Additionally, a $1,500 donation was made to the TEAM organization and $250 to the Ocean County Library.
This year’s TEAM recipients are:
Megan Laggner, $500, High School South
Misty Patel, $500, High School East
Vincent Tran, $500, High School North
Michelle Gao, $500, High School North
The Mark Catalano Scholarship is in remembrance of a former Toms River Police Detective and avid triathlete who passed away at the age of 54 while training for a competition. This year’s Detective Mark Catalano Memorial Scholarship Award recipients are:
Cereta Dellago, $1,500, High School East
Caitlin Maire, $1,500, High School East
Hunter Petrick, $1,500, High School North
Student names:
Back row from left to right are Hunter Petrick, Megan Laggner, Vincent Tran, Caitlin Maire
Front row from left to right are Misty Patel, Michelle Gao, Cereta Dellago
