An Elizabeth couple who established a Kean University scholarship in memory of their only daughter gave more than $850,000 from their estate to the Kean University Foundation to grant further scholarships to aspiring teachers.
Damarys Vazquez, the daughter of Damaryz and Alcibiades “Johnny” Vazquez, was an early childhood education major at Kean who graduated in 1998 and then taught fourth grade in Elizabeth for four years before dying of lupus complications in 2002. Her bereaved parents established a memorial fund in her honor the next year.
“Teaching was not a job for her — it was the fulfillment of a dream,” they wrote in a 2003 letter to friends and family about the fund.
The couple, who were well-liked members of the Cuban immigrant community, included the additional bequest in their will. Mrs. Vazquez died four years after her husband died in a house fire in Elizabeth in 2021.
Since its inception, the Damarys Vazquez Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund has given one scholarship to an incoming Kean education major each year.
The fund now has a total value of approximately $1 million thanks to the couple’s generous bequest and will be able to assist even more education students at Kean.
“This outstanding contribution comes at a time when there is a widespread teacher shortage across the state and our nation,” said Bill Miller, CEO of the Kean University Foundation. “The Vazquez estate gift will have a tremendous impact on increasing the number of scholarships awarded to aspiring teachers in Damarys’ name,”
In the 2003 letter signed by both Vazquez parents, they describe Damarys as “a beautiful young woman who touched the lives of so many” during her brief lifetime.
“We are proud to honor her memory in such a meaningful way,” they wrote.
Damarys basically grew up in her mother’s dance studio, which she practically grew up in. Her mother had been a professional ballerina in Cuba and was renowned as a role model for women before her death at the age of 78.
Damarys attended community events and dance recitals with her mother and “radiated an inner beauty to those around her,” according to her parents.
Damarys’ love of children was kindled by the dance school. Despite her illness’s hurdles, she pursued her teaching degree and thought her place was in the classroom.
Following her death, her parents worked to help other kids “realize their dreams just as Damarys realized hers.”
Jenna Elizabeth Peterpaul, a 2023 Kean graduate, gained encouragement for her ambition. She got the Damarys Vazquez scholarship her freshman year at Kean and graduated with a degree in early childhood teaching on Thursday, May 18.
She expressed her enthusiasm for teaching and gratitude for the scholarship.
“The Vazquez Scholarship allowed me to focus on my studies,” said Peterpaul, who plans to teach third grade in the fall. “I was able to take more courses to stay on track and graduate rather than having to worry about working too many hours.
“It makes me feel inspired that they helped so many people,” she said of the Vazquez family. “I appreciate that they really helped me, and they’re still doing it for other students.”