Union City High School senior Yesenia Collazo was awarded the 2010 Katie Gayeski Fund High School Scholarship. Collazo, a former sixth grade student of Miss Gayeski, plans to study nursing at Willam Paterson University.
Anagabriella Capurso, a sixth grade student at Robert Waters School in Union City, NJ, won this year's KGF Achievement Award. Her teacher praised her for being "...extraordinary, reliable and responsible, and for bringing hope and joy to others." 
After receiving the first Katie Gayeski Fund (KGF) High School Scholarships in the spring of 2009 for their outstanding high school achievements, KGF scholarship recipients Madai Garcia and Stephanie Jimenez, both of Union City, NJ, have now successfully completed their first year of college.Their courage and outstanding work ethic has followed them throughout their scholastic careers, even into their freshman year of college. What are the key ingredients to succeed over the next few years? Jimenez, who is studying to be a teacher herself, believes “...the main thing it would take is determination. I can be smart and do all of my work, but it takes determination to succeed.”
Jimenez and Garcia were both members of Katie Gayeski’s 6th grade class during her first year of teaching at Union City’s Robert Waters Elementary School. The two both recall fond memories of “Miss G.” and the lasting impression she had on their lives. “I enjoy learning because of her. You can ask my mother, [Miss G.] made everything fun and interactive. I never wanted to go to school because it was just me copying off the board and, as a kid, that gets boring. But she showed that learning can be fun,” Jimenez said. “Miss G. taught me that I can succeed no matter what anyone says.”
Garcia details a similar experience. “She made learning fun, and not many teachers do that.” “I remember Miss G. would always tell us that we could do it. That was an idea that she instilled in us. Before her, I didn’t like school; but then I got her, and I really started to enjoy it and succeed in school,” Madai noted.
“Katie worked to ignite a strong work ethic in her students while simultaneously encouraging them to believe in themselves. The combination was electric, inspiring and lasting for many of the students she touched,” board president Courtenay Higgins said of Gayeski’s legacy. Stephanie will be majoring in Mathematics, while Madai is thriving in the Latino Promise Program, a multidisciplinary curriculum at Farleigh Dickinson University that promises Latino student success and helps them reach their full potential. Her favorite course is one that focuses on leadership theories and public speaking in the public sector.
For younger students who face challenges along their academic paths, Madai offers these words of wisdom: “Just keep going, because even if you fail, you can always try again the second time.”
We wish nothing but the best for Madai and Stephanie as they continue to push towards their goals.
The KGF was established in July of 2004 in memory of 6th grade teacher Katherine Claire Gayeski to provide educational opportunities for at-risk youth with a passion for learning and to provide medical awareness for Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP), an often misdiagnosed blood disease that is characterized by the severe decrease in the number of blood platelets (thrombocytopenia), the destruction of red blood cells (hemolytic anemia), and disturbances in the nervous system. While the exact cause of TTP is unknown, recent advancements in research offer hope for early diagnosis and better treatment options and outcomes for patients.