Mark Rosario was honored as a recipient of the third annual Marisa Tufaro Memorial Edison High School Scholarship during the school’s virtual Senior Awards ceremony, which was posted online last night.
Marisa, who would have been a junior this year at Edison High School, died three years ago after complications from a heart transplant developed into a rare form of cancer, to which she succumbed following a valiant battle.
The memorial scholarship in Marisa’s name is funded through a donation James Monroe Elementary School made at the time of her passing to The Marisa Tufaro Foundation.
Established less than three years ago in loving memory of Marisa, our tax-exempt nonprofit has already donated more than $150,000 to help pediatric patients and other children in need throughout the greater Middlesex County area.
Those eligible for the scholarship were required to be seniors who were college bound or had applied or been accepted to a vocational or trade school. Candidates were required to be well-rounded and exceptional students who shared Marisa’s interests or took part in at least one of the extracurricular activities in which she was involved.
Mark, who will attend Princeton University in the fall, plans to major in Public and International Affairs, with minors in Journalism and Linguistics.
He served as Editor-in-Chief of the high school’s student newspaper, The Eagle’s Eye, was a member of the A Cappella Choir for two years and participated in Jazz Band.
Mark is a member of the National Honor Society, National Art Honor Society and National Science Honor Society.
“He’s just a great kid,” said Diane Frey, co-moderator of the school newspaper, who teaches English and Language Arts at the high school.
“He does things so well, and he does them on his own terms. He has character, he’s upstanding and he’s so supportive of other people. He delegates gently but effectively. That gentle spirit works for him. He’s natural and likable.”
Frey, who teaches advanced placement and honors classes, said Mark is among many Edison High School seniors she expects are “going to be successful.”
“I’m excited to see what he does,” she said, noting that as a writer, “he’s a bit of a sponge. He notices and observes so well and can articulate those observations.”
The role outstanding educators from Edison Township played in Marisa’s complete development can never be overstated.
Marisa was born with a complex cardiac defect that required six open-heart surgeries. Despite keeping hundreds of doctor’s appointments and being hospitalized for more than two years, she lived a vibrant life that inspired.
Marisa was an honor roll student at Herbert Hoover Middle School, which Mark also attended, and James Monroe Elementary School, where she served as student council vice president and was involved in numerous extracurricular activities.
At James Monroe Elementary School, Marisa also participated in annual spring musicals, wrote for the school newspaper, sang in the school chorus, played percussion in the school orchestra and was a member of various clubs.
Marisa served on the Youth Advisory Council at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, took classes at European School of Dance in Fords, attended summer camps at Middlesex County College, received vocal lessons at School of Rock in East Brunswick, developed a love for horses at Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center in Monroe and performed in two musicals, “Dear Edwina” (Abigail) and “The Wizard of Oz” (chorus), at the Forum Theater in Metuchen.
The Marisa Tufaro Foundation is eternally grateful for the support it has received from Edison High School. The football team has joined our nonprofit for 5K walks. The swimming program has participated in two county-wide swim-a-thons that have been our foundation’s single biggest fundraiser. The bowling team took part in two season-opening tournaments that served as fundraisers for our nonprofit and as holiday toy drives for pediatric patients. The girls basketball team partnered with our foundation to collect baby-care items each of the past two years for the Ozanam Family Shelter. Members of the boys basketball, baseball and wrestling teams have also participated in multiple fundraising events for our nonprofit. Administrators, faculty, staff, students and their parents have donated to our foundation or volunteered to assist at events.
“Our kids come together because we know Marisa is with us,” Edison High School Principal Charles Ross said. “She’s still a part of our community and we take care of our own.”
The foundation is honored to be able to give back to Edison High School through its annual scholarship.
We wish Mark and all of his classmates continued success in their future endeavors.
Following are hot links to stories detailing the many ways our foundation has assisted pediatric patients and other children in need since its inception on July 30, 2017.
- As a way of giving back to the Greater Middlesex Conference, which has been among our nonprofit’s biggest supporters, The Marisa Tufaro Foundation jump-started the league’s fundraising effort to feed county families during the coronavirus pandemic with a $2,500 donation to the Middlesex County Food Organization and Outreach Distribution Services.
- Provided funding for a part-time healthcare social worker to assist families of pediatric patients under the care of Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School’s Department of Pediatrics’ Division of Pediatric Cardiology.
- Donated more than $2,500 worth of ShopRite, Target and Walmart gift cards to dozens of Middlesex County families in need, helping parents purchase food, necessities and presents for their children this holiday season.
- Partnered with Woodbridge High School, the Central Jersey bowling community and the Port Reading Fire Department and EMS to deliver more than 1,000 toys to patients at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital’s Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital this holiday season.
- Sponsored more than 80 South Brunswick High School student-athletes, who donated their time and youthful energy to participate in a charity kickball tournament benefiting an inspirational boy living with an incurable and terminal disease.
- Established a fund at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, from which Marisa received outstanding care for her entire life, to provide financial support to families of pediatric patients from Middlesex County in medical crisis by helping to pay medical, personal or incidental expenses.
- Donated to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital’s newly established extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) program, a specialized cardiac and respiratory support system that saved Marisa’s life at another medical facility following her heart transplant.
- Conducted a boardwalk-themed Family Fun Night for a second consecutive year at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital, where the sights, sounds and smells of the Jersey Shore were brought to patients and their families through carnival games, food, prizes, music and more.
- Partnered with Teamwork Unlimited Foundation to treat Special Olympics athletes from the Raritan Bay Area YMCA to a Somerset Patriots game experience.
- Partnered with the Saint Joseph High School football program and campus ministry to pack and donate more than 200 “Weekend Snack Bags” for pediatric patients’ families at PSE&G Children’s Specialized Hospital in New Brunswick.
- Supported instruction and supplies for an art therapy program at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital for a third consecutive year.
- Funded the purchase of uniforms (shirts and shorts) for campers at Kiddie Keep Well Camp, which serves more than 600 underserved Middlesex County children annually.
- Partially funded the Make-A-Wish of a Middlesex County girl who was born with a complex cardiac defect to vacation with her family at Walt Disney World.
- Provided six summer art camp scholarships to Rutgers University’s Zimmerli Art Museum for Middlesex County elementary and middle school students.
- Provided college scholarship dollars to 10 high school students whose classroom performance and extracurricular involvement reflected Marisa’s educational success and whose charitable endeavors aligned with our foundation’s mission.
- Sponsored a Middlesex County elementary school’s field trip to Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center in Monroe, where students from self-contained autistic classes were afforded the opportunity to interact with horses and baby goats.
- As a way of giving back to the Rutgers University baseball program, whose roster features several players that have supported our nonprofit, our foundation matched the Scarlet Knights’ fundraising efforts with a donation to Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital’s child life program.
- Assisted multiple families whose children are in medical crisis, providing financial support through the payment of medical and/or personal expenses. Respecting their privacy, the foundation never divulges the names of those individuals or the dollar amount of assistance it provides.
- Paid forward the generosity Saint Thomas Aquinas High School has bestowed upon our foundation with a donation to the school community’s 21st annual Ahr Star spaghetti dinner, whose beneficiaries included a 9-year-old boy from Middlesex County with multiple disabilities.
- Partnered with the Edison and J.P. Stevens high school girls basketball teams to collect baby care items to donate to the Edison-based Ozanam Family Shelter.
- Partnered with the Middlesex County Association of School Administrators to offer financial relief to parents of children in medical crisis who lost wages while caring for their child at the hospital, who lack health insurance or whose insurance provider won’t cover certain medical expenses.
- Funded the purchase of brand-new metal bunk beds for campers at Kiddie Keep Well Camp, which serves more than 600 underserved Middlesex County children annually.
- Partnered with Old Bridge and South Brunswick high schools to collect thousands of toys for pediatric patients at Saint Peter’s University Children’s Hospital and Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital.
- Partnered with the Kittim N. Sherrod Foundation to provide a youth football and cheerleading organization with a bilingual state-of-the art automated external defibrillator, as well as AED and cardiopulmonary resuscitation training for adult members of the organization.
- Supported instruction and supplies for an art therapy program at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital, to which our foundation also provided funds for infant mobiles and toy cars staff use to transport children to the operating room for surgery.
- Provided money for equipment and supplies for students with disabilities who utilize the Lakeview School’s newly constructed aquatics center.
- Partnered with Teamwork Unlimited Foundation to provide medical alert bracelets to children with autism and pediatric patients with chronic illness who receive outstanding care from Children’s Specialized Hospital, which annually serves more than 34,000 children statewide.
- Partially funded the Make-A-Wish of a Middlesex County boy who is winning a battle with high-risk neuroblastoma to vacation with his family at Walt Disney World.
- Provided physical therapy at Special Strides Therapeutic Riding Center and Project Walk for Middlesex County children whose families do not have health insurance or whose families’ health insurer does not cover the cost of the physical therapy.
- Partnered with Edison High School and the Chamberlain College of Nursing for two consecutive years to raise money and collect nonperishable food items to benefit Middlesex County children and their families through Hands of Hope via our foundation’s participation in the Race to Outrun Hunger.
- Provided new iPads and gaming system accessories (Xbox and PS4 games, controllers, chargers) for adolescent patients at Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital.
- Partnered with Woodbridge High School and the Central Jersey bowling community to deliver hundreds of toys to patients at Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, where Marisa underwent a successful heart transplant.
- Provided 7 summer art camp scholarships to Rutgers University’s Zimmerli Art Museum for Middlesex County elementary and middle school students.
- Provided college scholarship dollars to 7 high school students whose classroom performance and extracurricular involvement reflected Marisa’s educational success and whose charitable endeavors aligned with our foundation’s mission.
- Made a donation in honor of Piscataway’s Conackamack Middle School, which honored Marisa during its 27th annual Turkey Trot, to the township’s FISH Hospitality Program, which provides shelter, meals, clothing and other services to homeless families in Middlesex County.
- Provided James Monroe Elementary School students with food items to fill a hundred “Weekend Snack Bags” for pediatric patients’ families.
- Provided meals and goods for families staying at the Ronald McDonald House of Central Jersey.
- Partnered with Middlesex High School to conduct a coat drive for Middlesex County children.
- Provided gift cards for pediatric patients and their families.