{"id":5056,"date":"2016-05-10T17:46:35","date_gmt":"2016-05-10T21:46:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.saintpeters.edu\/news\/?p=5056"},"modified":"2016-05-25T15:56:32","modified_gmt":"2016-05-25T19:56:32","slug":"hearts-minds-the-saint-peters-university-scholarship-celebration-honors-frank-l-fekete-cpa-75-and-toni-ann-turco-86","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.saintpeters.edu\/news\/2016\/05\/10\/hearts-minds-the-saint-peters-university-scholarship-celebration-honors-frank-l-fekete-cpa-75-and-toni-ann-turco-86\/","title":{"rendered":"Hearts & Minds Honors Frank L. Fekete, CPA \u201975 and Toni Ann Turco ’86"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hearts & Minds: The Â鶹ÊÓƵ’s University Scholarship Celebration<\/em> annually raises funds to support the University’s General Scholarship Fund and this year’s event on Friday, May 6, did just that, but in a new way. Members of the Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s community gathered in The Duncan Family Sky Room for the first Hearts & Minds<\/em> themed, “Monte Carlo Night.” Guests tried their luck on casino games, participated in a silent auction and enjoyed a martini bar and diverse dining options. Frank L. Fekete, CPA \u201975 was presented with the Professional Achievement Award, and Toni Ann Turco \u201986 was presented with the Service to the Community Award. The “Monte Carlo Night” proved to be a great success as the amount raised was nearly tripled compared to the last Hearts & Minds<\/em> event.<\/p>\n

Eugene J. Cornacchia, Ph.D., president of Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s University, recognized the two honorees for taking chances and having faith – qualities that future students need to pursue their dreams.<\/p>\n

Since 1984, Fekete has served as the managing partner of Mandel, Fekete and Bloom, CPAs, a certified public accounting firm located in Jersey City. He is involved in many organizations and serves on many boards, including the Board of Trustees for Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s and John Cabot University, an American university located in Rome, Italy.\u00a0During his acceptance speech, Fekete thanked his family, especially his mother-in-law for prompting him to pursue an education at Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s. He took night classes, and soon built a future for himself and his family. \u201cÂ鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s has given me more than I could ever give back,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Turco was honored with a Service to Community Award, because after a successful finance career, she decided to follow another passion, rescuing dogs. She founded Home for Good Dog Rescue, and has saved more than 4,000 dogs since 2010. A heartwarming video, including clips of Dr. Cornacchia with his adopted dog, delighted the audience. Turco said she is \u201cliving the Jesuit mission of men, women and dogs for others.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hearts & Minds<\/em> celebrates integrity, leadership and service to others and proceeds from this annual event help deserving students have access to a quality Jesuit education\u2014students such as Charles Weening ’16.<\/p>\n

At the event, guests took a chance playing poker; alternatively, Weening took a chance on Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s. Before coming to the University, Weening had his mind set on an alternate route. Since fourth grade, Weening dreamed of going to the U.S. Air Force Academy, and serving in the military. His dreams were about to come true when he was accepted, but soon after received a letter informing him that he was disqualified due to a medical condition. After contemplating college, he chose Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s based on a generous financial aid award. \u201cAlthough, I didn\u2019t know it at the time, I was exactly where I was meant to be,\u201d Weening said of his start at Â鶹ÊÓƵ\u2019s.<\/p>\n

An album of photos from the evening is now available on Facebook<\/a> and the Hearts & Minds<\/em>\u00a0Commemorative Journal is available here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\t\t