Community Corner

Scholarship Helps Women Who Want to Help Others

The Babylon Village Women's Club awarded its annual women's scholarship to two returning students who aim to make a difference in their community.

Julia Kind and Alison Dequatro are headed back to campus this year but they aren't exactly naive 18-year-olds, fresh out of high school. They must juggle the rigors of their coursework with the demands of everyday adult life: families, jobs, and various responsibilities.

But thanks to the Babylon Village Women's Club (BVWC), they are getting a little financial boost and a huge emotional one.

The two women are the recipients of this year's BVWC scholarship, awarded annually to a nontraditional woman returning to higher education who either lives or works in the village. This year, the club decided to award the prize to two equally deserving individuals, said Joanne Zalud-Crawford, a member of the selection committee.

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"We looked at applicants who had a good plan, and who wanted to give back to the community in some way, " she said.

"We also thought these two women needed that little vote of confidence that winning gave them," Zalud-Crawford added. "It was our way of saying that we believe in you and what you are doing."

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The newly married Kind has a very specific plan for how she wants to give back to the community. A native of upstate New York who moved to Babylon Village several years ago, Kind wants to work with veterans and their families as a social worker.

She began a master's in social work at Stony Brook University last year after she spent much of her twenties working in the media field after getting her BA from SUNY Geneseo in 2004.

"I thought it made sense to get the master's degree now and make that career shift, while I'm still young," said Kind, who is in her late 20s and pursuing the degree full-time.

"This scholarship will allow me to take summer classes without taking out a loan. It's hard, since I'm not working right now."

Kind dreams of opening her own clinic one day, and sees an unfulfilled need in the counseling world for licensed social workers to work with military veterans.

"It's such an honor to be considered for this, by the movers and shakers of Babylon," she told the members of the club during the dinner's awards ceremony.

The club, which is open to all women who either live, work, or pay taxes in the village, organized a committee of five members who met with each finalist. The scholarship fund is raised separately from club fundraising, and $2,000 is awarded each year.

Dequatro, a Bellmore resident, also hopes to further her education to allow her to help others. Inspired by the events of 9/11, she became a volunteer E.M.T. with the Bellmore Fire Department. She works at a pain management medical office in Babylon Village, and hopes to continue in the field with classes toward an LPN certification.

After graduating high school, marriage and children helped push off Dequatro's plans for additional education, but now, with her kids becoming adults, she's ready to hit the books again.

"I've been putting off going back to school, " she said, "but this award gave me that little push I needed."


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