Mary Jean Pizza Memorial Scholarship

Friends, Family, Colleagues and Acquaintances:

Mary Jean Pizza passed away last year on April 5th. She was a beloved person and did so much to help others in need. I have been trying to figure out a way to bring her forward with us even though she is no longer physically here with us. I've given a lot of thought to what would be the best way to make this happen. There are different ways this could be achieved, but I've decided that I would like to enable a memorial scholarship in her name that would go on in perpetuity. Each year, a college student would receive a scholarship in her name. I've also chosen a 501 (c)(3) non-profit foundation that will manage the funds and scholarship for years to come.

This would enable a few things:

I have chosen the Alpha Phi Delta Foundation. Alpha Phi Delta is an Italian Heritage fraternity that I became a member of in the Spring of 1993 when I was enrolled in college at NJIT in Newark, NJ. Alpha Phi Delta (also known as APD) seeks to unite in fraternal bond college men of good character, to stimulate good scholarship and fellowship, to promote loyalty to one’s alma mater, to bind members to the commitment of their membership oath, and to provide service to the community and humanity. As an undergraduate, I received three Alpha Phi Delta Scholarships and have given back over the years to help grow the scholarship funds of the foundation. As an alumnus, I have been a district governor and provided leadership assistance to the undergraduate chapters and am a member of the North Jersey Alumni Club (NJAC) where graduate brothers in the region stay connected socially and foster philanthropic causes and activities.

The Alpha Phi Delta Foundation has a Scholarship Division which in 2022 awarded 70 recipients scholarships ranging from $500 to $5,000 totaling $70,000 in scholarship awards. The fraternity's scholarship recipients have a 98.5% graduation rate, and like myself, commonly give back to the foundation later in life ultimately growing what was less than $20,000 in yearly awards when I was an undergraduate to over $70,000 expected in 2023. A minimum level of $10,000 is required to endow a scholarship for one (1) unit. This creates a $500 award granted annually in perpetuity. Each additional $10,000 will grow the scholarship by another $500. The scholarship fund can be added to on an ongoing basis to grow the principal. Should the principal reaches the next $10,000 milestone an additional unit will be awarded annually.

Why Alpha Phi Delta?

Ways to contribute:

Please specify Mary Jean Pizza Scholarship.

via Paypal

Please specify Mary Jean Pizza Scholarship in the notes section

Alpha Phi Delta Foundation, Inc.

P.O. Box 23188

Pittsburgh, PA 15222-6188

Please specify: Mary Jean Pizza Scholarship

Account #: 483062117150

Routing #: 026009593

The Alpha Phi Delta Foundation, Inc. (tax id #31-1005845) is already set up in CyberGrants if your company uses CyberGrants for matching contributions. If you donate directly to the Alpha Phi Delta Foundation, please let me know so I can track it with the Foundation and update this GoFundMe page.

Goal:

I am committed to getting this scholarship funded to a minimum of one unit in 2023. Hopefully, together we can get it to two or more units and continue to grow it in the future.

Thank you for considering supporting this effort. I hope and trust this enables us all to help keep the memory of Mary Jean alive.