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NCCC Students Honored for Volunteer Work
Northwestern CT Community College in Winsted is pleased to announce that two of its students, Elizabeth Bull and Albert Ferri, have been awarded scholarships from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation. In recognition of their leadership and excellence as demonstrated through academics and community service, each student will receive a $1,000 scholarship.
Elizabeth Bull was deeply involved in the campaign "Captioning Now—Striving for Captioning in Movie Theaters Across the State of Connecticut." She got involved in Captioning Now through her membership in the Northwest Deaf Club at NCCC. She was elected Secretary of the club and played a major role in corresponding with, meeting and lobbying Connecticut state legislators; she also gave public testimony before the lawmakers. Elizabeth also has contributed in making the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate aware that oppression and discrimination of Deaf people and their families will not be tolerated in Connecticut.
As a result of the 135 hours that Ms. Bull dedicated over a one-year period to this campaign, she can proudly declare, "Now my friends and their families are able to enjoy a public accommodation without the need of an interpreter, professional or otherwise." The success of Captioning Now has had an enormous affect on Elizabeth's life. She said, "I love knowing that one woman can make a profound difference just by taking a serious interest in the well-being of peers."
Albert Ferri spent 504 hours from October 25 to November 14, 2001 as a Red Cross Disaster Relief Volunteer at Ground Zero after the September 11 terrorist attack. After the collapse of the World Trade Center, Albert, who was certified as a Red Cross volunteer in Rhode Island, sought and was granted a recommendation from his chapter headquarters for a national assignment. He was assigned to work in the Red Zone at Ground Zero.
"I knew the call would come with very little notice and that would mean leaving my family and job for three weeks," said Albert." I also faced the possibility of losing credits and a semester's worth of work, but NCCC quickly extended its understanding and immense support, for which I will always be grateful."
Albert worked as the supervisor at Respite Center #1, the main shelter at Ground Zero. The Center provided disaster relief to the City of New York, assisted those affected by the attack and provided relief to rescue workers. At the Center, Albert oversaw twenty volunteers on a daily basis. His responsibilities also included ordering food and supplies, staffing the kitchen and supply areas, and managing the logistics to maintain these functions in a devastated zone. Albert and his fellow volunteers provided 3,600 hot meals each day to the relief workers.
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