Brookfield Women's Club Awards Scholar at Annual Awards Event

Brookfield, CT — The Women’s Club of Brookfield’s recently presented their “Annual Scholarship Award” to Brookfield High School senior, Ashley DeFreitas, at the Brookfield Craft Center, on June 8, 2016.

The club presents this award annually to a student or students who excel in academics, community service and overall leadership. De Freitas’ guests at the dinner included her parents, Donna and Alfred DeFreitas. Also co-hosting the evening was Craft Center Director Howard Lasser, who later spoke about the Center.

The Brookfield Women's Club released the following statement about the award winner:

Ashely DeFreitas’ merits have a life of their own. “She is a Peer Counselor and trained to reach out and help fellow classmates; Ashley was selected during her freshman year and made an impact immediately. She is the epitome of what a peer counselor should be. A natural leader within a group – she radiates enthusiasm in everything she does. She has an exceptional character and leads by example,” says Sharon Davidson of the Math Department at Brookfield High School.

Another Brookfield High School teacher, Felicia Liebler adds, “Ashley is a true humanitarian and a walking inspiration. She is a role-model for hard work and resilience. She improves whatever situation she is currently in and absorbs every minute of it for her own personal growth….Ashley is also part of the Future Teacher’s Club and Big Brother Big Sister program. These activities have earned her a President’s Volunteer Service Award at both the Bronze and Gold levels during her sophomore and junior years, respectively.”

As for herself, DeFreitas shares that she was excited about becoming a Peer Counselor but the odds were stacked against her, “but I didn’t give up … after going through an interview from 20 other upperclassmen I got the life changing news that I was accepted! I’ve learned so much from this club; I learned how to be a good listener, the importance of body language, how to act responsibly, and the importance of helping our community.”

DeFreitas plans on attending the University of Hartford in the fall of 2016, majoring in psychology and minoring in business.
The Women’s Club of Brookfield’s Scholarship Committee members included Nina Zschunke, Betty Zeigler, Jeanine Hanewicz and Betty Hensal. The event was hosted by Jeanine Hanewicz, Cynthia Buszek, Linda Delucia and Lorraine DiPaola, who provided a plethora raffle items including organic “locally-grown green” bed baskets raising further funds for social services.

As the event was held at The Brookfield Craft Center, located by the four-corners in Brookfield, CT, Director Howard Lasser was the honorary speaker of the evening. He began by urging the club to help bring awareness to the Center’s existence. “The Brookfield Craft Center is a great community asset and reaching out to groups like yours is critical to the success of our efforts here. So few really know that we exist, so when we are able to engage others it helps to spread the word,” Lasser said.

He added, “So many pass this building and they might see a retail shop but they pass by unaware of our mission and our capabilities. We are sitting in a building that is 230 years old. It makes up just a part of our 2.5 acre campus, with 6 buildings and 7 craft studios. While we have 7 studios where we teach jewelry making, glass bead making, fused glass, wood turning, pottery, weaving and blacksmith skills, we do more than teach, we preserve the past, in the historic nature of the crafts as well as the historic building we occupy.”

Lasser shared some history of the Center and the grounds, telling the club that “the main building was once a mill. Farmers would bring their grain here to be ground into flour. Here is where they would meet, discuss current events and local gossip. This was the town meeting place. We once again want to create that meeting place, where artists of all skills and interest can come, share ideas, gain insights, where there are resources to help them further their skills and provide support for their efforts. We do this currently in our open studios and periodic lecture programs we offer. We also provide an exhibition space for their works to bring the community here to see works from some of the nation’s top artists. At the same time we use our exhibition space to encourage new artists. Last March we hosted a juried show for local high school students, displaying over 70 works from students from all around our area.”

“Our goal is to bring people from all over, from all ages and all skill levels to the Brookfield Craft Center. While maintaining our standards of excellence in our teaching, we also want to reach out to those seeking new experiences and to explore their creativity. So in addition to advanced classes, we have classes for beginners, we have a summer program for middle school aged children, and we do programs for seniors as well.”

“Some of you from the Women’s Club of Brookfield are already part of our valued volunteer team, such as Marion Miller and Cynthia Cornelius. We could not put on a reception without the guidance of Pam Martino. This is our craft center and community involvement is key to its success.”

To close the evening of events out, the Women’s Club of Brookfield installed the 2015-2016 Board of Officers who will be taking on their positions in September. They are Co-Presidents: Jeanine Hanewicz and Mary Schiffenhaus, Co-Vice Presidents: Susan Murphy and Patricia Tharrington, Treasurer: Marie Yapoujian, Secretary, Meeting Minutes: Nina Zschunke, Scretary, Newsletter: Laura Pizzirusso, Publicity: Melissa Marici, Social Services: Lorraine Di Paola and Marlys McMullin, Hospitality: Joanna Charecky and Janice Leggett.
For more information regarding membership in the Women’s Club of Brookfield, please contact WCB Co- President Jeanine Hanewicz at jhh322@aol.com. Hanewicz adds, “it was such a great honor to bestow our Annual Scholarship on such a worthy young lady as Ashley DeFreitas, her ambition and unwavering dedication to our community is inspiring to say the least.”

Photo: Brookfield Women's Club