Dedham Student Receives Educational Scholarship

Hannah Hunter, a Dedham resident, received a scholarship from residents at NewBridge on the Charles, a Hebrew SeniorLife senior living campus in Dedham. The residents established the NewBridge on the Charles Scholarship Committee to fund the educational goals of NewBridge staff members. Hunter is one of 10 NewBridge staff to be awarded a scholarship.

Hunter, who started at NewBridge as a receptionist in 2018, said she “couldn’t think of a better first job experience.” She is attending the University of Vermont to pursue a degree in computer science in the College of Engineering & Mathematical Sciences.

Hunter noted how happy she was to be part of the community, “every single week, every single shift.” She said, “I’ve made extremely close connections with residents and employees, and learned new skills such as decision making, communication skills and problem solving. Words cannot describe how thankful I am for the scholarship.”

Unlike most scholarships that are funded by organizations or municipalities, this initiative was created by the residents of NewBridge on the Charles, who also funded the scholarships.

Members of the scholarship committee and many NewBridge residents remembered the support they received that helped them move ahead in their lives. “One of the motivators was that the residents appreciate how valuable education is, and that it’s a hallmark of our own personal histories,” said Benita Ross, co-chair of the Scholarship Fund. “There was an opportunity, in the midst of the pandemic, where the employees have remained so tremendously positive and supportive, for us as a community to pay it forward,” and support employees’ goals for furthering their education.

As committee member Jack Sobel explained, “Education took me out of a New York Lower East Side tenement. The young adults at NewBridge deserve to have the same shot at life that many of us had through a good education. They will give back to our society, and they are the future of America.”

The recipients will use the funds to pursue education in nursing, psychology, mechanical engineering, and other majors at colleges that include UMass Boston, UMass Lowell, Howard University, Bentley University, University of New Hampshire, Culinary Institute of America, Bunker Hill Community College, Roxbury Community College, Mass Bay Community College and Blue Hills Regional. The first 10 awardees were recognized in a celebratory Zoom ceremony broadcast to the community in August.

The committee is gearing up to raise funds to issue scholarships for subsequent years.

About Hebrew SeniorLife

Hebrew SeniorLife, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, is a national senior services leader uniquely dedicated to rethinking, researching, and redefining the possibilities of aging. Based in Boston, the nonprofit organization has provided communities and health care for seniors, research into aging, and education for geriatric care providers since 1903. For more information about Hebrew SeniorLife, visit http://www.hebrewseniorlife.org and our blog, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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