RAMAPO COLLEGE Inserra Shoprite Supermarkets, Inc
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32nd Annual Distinguished Citizens Dinner Dinner Sponsors Stryker Vice Chairs Mike & Elaine Adler The Adler Aphasia Center Century 21 Construction RAMAPO COLLEGE Inserra ShopRite Supermarkets, Inc. McCarter & English Myron Corporation O’Connor Davies Rockland Electric Company Distinguished UPS Corporate Sponsors BD Citizens Dinner BMW of North America, LLC KPMG LLP Holy Name Medical Center Lakeland Bank Net-A-Porter Group 2014 Sodexo Leadership ESPN Radio Dave and Fran Hackett ‘80 March 8, 2014 The Messina Family Sharp Rockleigh Country Club Benefactors The Dator Team LLC Rockleigh, New Jersey The Alfiero & Lucia Palestroni Foundation, Inc. The DCD Committee John Brewster ‘75 and Debra Perry ‘85, Esq. Co-chairpersons Elaine Adler Joyce Menegus Richard Conti Lisa Ryan ‘84 Linda I. Dator Laura Roberts ‘81 James Dziekonski Florence Sabrin Mary Ann Kezmarkzy Frances K. Hackett ‘80 Chair, Board of Governors Program Honoree Opening Reception 6:00 p.m. Welcome MS. FRANCES K. HACKETT ‘80 Chair, Board of Governors and MS. CATHLEEN T. DAVEY Vice President, Institutional Advancement and Executive Director, Ramapo College Foundation Presentation MR. GEORGE C. RUOTOLO, JR. Chair, Board of Trustees Remarks DR. PETER P. MERCER LL.B. President, Ramapo College of New Jersey Awards Ceremony DEBRA PERRY ESQ. ‘85 and MR. JOHN BREWSTER ‘75 Co-chairpersons, Distinguished Citizens Dinner Honorees DR. TIMOTHY M. FINLEY ‘94 MR. DON LAGRECA ‘92 MR. GLEN MESSINA ‘85 MR. REZA RAFIZADEH Dinner Silent Auction Closes 11:00 p.m. Dancing ‘til Midnight “THE INFERNOS” 1 Chair’s Message Frances K. Hackett ‘80 Chair Board of Governors Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. As chair of the Ramapo College Foundation Board of Governors and as a proud alumna, I welcome you to our 32nd Distinguished Citizens Dinner. This annual event has become a tradition at the College. It gives us the opportunity to gather and to recognize leaders in our community while also highlighting the programs, dedicated faculty, creative students and accomplished alumni who make up the Ramapo College family. I would also like to take this occasion to publicly acknowledge you, our donors, for your generous support and commitment to ensuring that our students benefit from a quality education. Each year, I witness firsthand the impact our support has on hundreds of outstanding students who have been awarded scholarships. In meeting students and their families, I am always overwhelmed by the thanks we receive, and I hear over and over again about the difference that their scholarship has made in their lives. It gives me great pride to be able to say that some of these amazing students are here tonight. On their behalf, I thank each of you for investing in them. 2 Chair’s Message Frances K. Hackett ‘80 Chair Board of Governors This sentiment is particularly meaningful this year as we honor three of our alumni and one of our closest and dearest corporate sponsors. This year’s honorees embody so many of the qualities that make Ramapo College special, to me and to all of you – civic engagement, dedication to community service, hard work and persistence, and, most importantly, the desire to push boundaries, both personally and professionally. It gives me great pleasure to honor Dr. Timothy M. Finley, class of ’94, an anesthesiologist practicing at Holy Name Medical Center, Mr. Don LaGreca, class of ’92, co-host of the Michael Kay Show on ESPN Radio; Mr. Glen Messina, class of ’85, president and chief executive officer of PHH Corporation; as well as Mr. Reza Rafizadeh, vice president of operations for campus services at Sodexo. Your attendance at tonight’s event helps us continue Ramapo College’s tradition of excellence. Proceeds from the Distinguished Citizens Dinner provide scholarships for deserving students, allow faculty members to conduct research and to stay current in their areas of study, and support many campus programs and projects. In closing, I thank all of you again for joining us and supporting the Ramapo College Foundation. 3 Honoree Dr. Timothy M. Finley ‘94 Dr. Timothy Finley is an anesthesiologist practicing at Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck, New Jersey. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Ramapo College in 1994 and went on to graduate from UMDNJ School of Osteopathic Medicine in 1998. He completed a residency in anesthesiology at Drexel University College of Medicine. For several years, Dr. Finley traveled regularly to Haiti as a volunteer to offer his medical services. He did so again recently following the earthquake that devastated the country. He serves on the Doctors’ Counsel of Sending Our Love to Haiti, a local organization formed by churches and synagogues to sponsor fundraising events. He was also honored recently by the UJA Federation of Northern New Jersey for his work on behalf of the earthquake victims. In addition to his volunteer work, Dr. Finley has donated generously to Haiti earthquake relief efforts and has undertaken a fundraising effort to provide scholarships for two Haitian students to attend Ramapo College. Dr. Finley serves on the Dean’s Advisory Board for the School of Theoretical and Applied Science. He received the President’s Award of Merit at 2011 Commencement Ceremony. 4 Remarks Dr. Timothy M. Finley ‘94 President and Mrs. Mercer, members of the Foundation Board of Governors, Honorees, Family and Friends, I am humbled and grateful to be included among the very distinguished honorees being recognized tonight by my alma mater, Ramapo College. Ramapo changed my life. My experience at Ramapo College made it possible for me to achieve personal and career goals that are way beyond what I ever could have dreamed of when I dropped out of school in the ninth grade. Becoming a physician was not anything I ever thought about when I was growing up, and I’m pretty sure that none of my friends or members of my family, or any of my teachers in Hackensack Schools would ever have believed that medicine would become my profession. When I left school, I had a short and unsuccessful stint as a fish monger, and then I found a job in construction. But I have been fortunate throughout my life to have met people who have helped, supported and mentored me – from Bob Wilson, the plumber I worked with when I was 20 years old and who gave me the advice that I try to live by: that one has to be a “giver” in this life, and influenced me to become a hospital volunteer in my off hours; to the physicians in the department where I volunteered who encouraged me to get my General Equivalency Diploma, go to college and actually consider medicine as a career; to Dr. Ed Saiff and Dr. Rena Bacon, my mentors at Ramapo College who never let me deviate from my newly-found goal of medical school; to Dr. Peter and Jackie Mercer, who nurtured my academic career at Ramapo and became my dear friends; to my colleagues at Bergen Anesthesia Associates; Michael Maron, chief executive officer of Holy Name Medical Center and Dr. David Butler, who recruited me to accompany him on medical missions to Haiti for the last 10 years and opened my eyes to the needs of the impoverished communities at the Hôpital Sacre Couer in Milot, Haiti. Ramapo College went out on a limb in accepting me. I had a ninth grade education and never took the SATs, but I was accepted through the “application-through-sponsorship program.” My sponsors were the doctors who encouraged me to consider medical school when I was a hospital volunteer. I am truly indebted to those doctors for seeing something in me, and Ramapo for giving me, an “unconventional” student, a chance and legitimizing me – allowing me to achieve the credentials I needed to apply to medical school. I am grateful to Ramapo and very proud that the College continues to open its doors to students with promise who don’t fit the typical student profile, including the students from Haiti that we sponsor each year. It is gratifying to look back and remember my days at Ramapo, where it really began with me. Congratulations to my fellow honorees and many thanks to Dr. Peter and Jackie Mercer, the Foundation Board and the Dinner Committee. This is a very special night for me, I am grateful to all of you who made the evening possible and to everyone who is here to support me. 5 Honoree Don LaGreca ‘92 Don La Greca has been with ESPN New York radio from its start and was actually the first voice listeners heard when the station launched on September 3, 2001. Today, Mr. La Greca is co-host of ESPN New York’s “The Michael Kay Show,” weekdays from 3 - 7 p.m. He has been part of the Kay show since 2002, as the primary fill-in host for Michael and as New York SportsCenter anchor. Mr. La Greca hosts ESPN New York’s official “Jets Gameday” pre-game show, the Jets’ post-game show, and “The 5th Quarter,” all with former Jet Greg Buttle. After many seasons of hosting the official Rangers’ pre- and post-game shows on ESPN New York radio, Mr. La Greca was added to the Rangers’ radio broadcast team for the 2008-2009 season as the fill-in play-by- play announcer for lead announcer Kenny Albert. Mr. La Greca has been around the sports radio industry for years. He started at Sports Phone, where he updated scores and covered all nine local pro teams. He then worked as a Sports anchor at 1010 WINS and at WFAN from 1996-2001. Mr. La Greca was also a talk show host at eYada.com.