Scholarships honor college-bound students who lost relatives to 9/11-related illnesses
LOWER MANHATTAN, New York (WABC) -- Six collegebound students whose families were devastated by 9/11-related illnesses received $25,000 scholarships Wednesday night, including Sophia Cucuzza, who lost her mother to cancer years after the attacks.
Sophia's mother, Jaime Cucuzza, worked near Ground Zero. Sophia said doctors warned her mother she had only months to live.
"They told her she only had three months left to live and she said, 'absolutely not, I am going to power through,'" she said. "She wanted to see me grow up and I'm forever in awe that she was able to live on for those three years and see me grow up a little bit."
Ian Dannenfelser, another scholarship recipient, said his grandfather, a volunteer firefighter, also died from cancer linked to his time at the World Trade Center site.
"He didn't have to go there. He wanted to," Dannenfelser said. "He would have gone the day of if he could have, but they told him to wait. It's just like so powerful and so important to me. He's truly one of my heroes."
The Barasch & McGarry Foundation, which awarded the scholarships, said it aims to support young people who grew up facing the emotional and financial fallout of 9/11-related illnesses.
"I want them to know that their parent or grandparent didn't die in vain," Michael Barasch said.
Organizers emphasized that the federal Victims Compensation Fund, created in the years after the attacks, remains a critical resource.
"There's help available. There's free healthcare. There's compensation. And yet so many people - especially civilians - still don't realize it," Barasch said.
Dr. Kerry Kelly of the FDNY World Trade Center oncology unit said new cancer cases continue to emerge.
"We're averaging 30 new cases a month," she said. "Some of which are more minor. Many of which are significant. I think the good news is we're trying to catch cancers earlier."
Sophia, who spent much of her childhood in hospitals while her mother was treated, is now studying to become a nurse. She said the scholarship will help her pursue that goal.
"They really did help my family and help my mom so I wanted to be that person for someone else," she said.
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