Sequins may light up the room at Denim & Dazzle, but sparkly attire isn’t the only the thing that shines at this gala hosted by the Scholarship Foundation.
What’s truly bright is what lies ahead for the nine young men who were awarded $10,000 scholarships to offset tuition and other expenses at universities that include Yale, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Colorado.
In addition to the scholarships, the foundation assigns mentors that will remain in contact with each student during the course of their college career.
“It’s not just where they are going, but how they perform when they get there,” explains Delta Eta Boulé president Marc Wallace. “We expect great things from them, and we acknowledge that intense courses of study at major universities can be overwhelming. We are here to help them through.”
Denver County Court Judge Gary Jackson introduced the members of the scholarship Class of 2015:
Urim Apocalypse, a graduate of Hinkley High School, who will study animation at the University of Colorado Denver; Overland High grad Yonatan Araia, who will study ethics, politics and economics at Yale; Jeremiah Hodges, a graduate of Cherokee Trail High School, who will study business administration at Hastings College; and Joseph Muller, a graduate of Overland High School, who will study mathematics and computer science at MIT.
Yosef Robele, also an Overland grad, will major in geology and environmental science at the University of Pennsylvania. Elijah Ross, a graduate of Eaglecrest High School, will explore health sciences at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, while Rayvon Solomon, a graduate of Regis Jesuit High School, will attend the University of Northern Colorado.
Eaglecrest High’s Darian Turner is going to attend Colorado Mesa University with the goal of becoming an athletic trainer and Aime Izineza, a graduate of Gateway High School, will major in biology at Regis University.
Their mentors are Jeriod Patterson, Ed Hopkins, David Powell, Ken Taylor, Craig Jones, Rashad Booker, Vince Bowen and Dr. Nelson Mozia.
Jackson, who has chaired the scholarship foundation since its inception in 1998, noted that the program is in the process of expanding to include internships for each new group of scholars.
Denim & Dazzle 2015 “Reaching New Heights” began with a red-carpet entry to the Seawell Grand Ballroom, where such community leaders as federal judge Wiley Daniel, his wife, Ida, and her mother, Loleta Seymour, paused to have souvenir snapshots taken before going on to enjoy a silent auction social, dinner and dancing.
Other guests included state Rep. Janet Buckner; Faye and Dr. Reginald Washington, who are chairing Western Fantasy, the Oct. 10 gala benefiting Volunteers of America; Alicia Harvey, president of Epsilon Nu Omega chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority; Ed Wingfield, president/CEO of the Urban Leadership Foundation of Colorado; Elycia Cook, executive director of the teen mentoring organization ; LaDawn Sullivan, president of the Denver chapter of The Links Inc.; College Track chief Eddie Koen Jr. and his wife, Andria; Wy Livingston, owner of Wystone’s World Teas; publicist Sylvia Cordy; marketing executive Ivan Burwell; dentist Collis Johnson; Xcore Corp. president Eula Adams and his wife, Janet; Denver School Board member Landri Taylor and his wife, Gloria; Jim and Kathryn Kaiser with Neda Ghaemi, director of Tiffany & Co. Cherry Creek, and her husband, David; and Morgan Stanley VP Anthony Paul and his wife, Cherrie, who will welcome their first child in August.
Delta Eta Boulé is the Denver chapter of Sigma Pi Phi, the oldest African American fraternity in the United States.
