Two Working Women Snag L.V.I.S. Scholarships
In recognition of women over the age of 25 who are full-time South Fork residents and currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree, or intending to return to higher education, the Ladies Village Improvement Society of East Hampton has awarded two Madelon DeVoe Talley Scholarships for $3,000 each to Diane Carino-Rivera and Meghan Delaney Bambrick.
The awards were presented by Sarah Minardi, the chairwoman of student awards at L.V.I.S., during Monday’s member meeting at the East Hampton Presbyterian Church.
The scholarship is named in honor of Madelon Talley, a lifelong summer resident of East Hampton and member of the L.V.I.S. Her career path was the perfect template for late starters: She completed her college degree in her late 30s and followed it with her first job as an investment analyst for the Dreyfus Corporation. She had three children at the time and became recognized as a powerhouse in the male-dominated finance world of the 1970s, eventually becoming the first female fund manager on Wall Street. Her husband, Truman M. Talley, set up the scholarship after her death in 1997.
Ms. Carino-Rivera is a medical assistant at East Hampton Urgent Care on Pantigo Road. A native of the Bronx, she graduated from high school five years ago and completed a medical assistant’s course at a two-year college. Her dream, however, is to become a registered nurse. When she saw the notice about the scholarship in the newspaper, Ms. Carino-Rivera decided to apply. She begins classes at Suffolk Community College in January but will keep her full-time job and attend classes in the evenings, as well as completing courses online. Ms. Carino-Rivera lives in East Hampton, and her two children, ages 5 and 7, attend the John M. Marshall Elementary School.
Ms. Bambrick has attended Long Island University at Riverhead for the last three years and is expected to graduate in the spring with a degree in new-media communications. A 2009 graduate of East Hampton High School, she first attended Stony Brook University but said she felt “lost . . . as if merely a number instead of a vital part of the campus ecosystem.” Serious health issues, including a diagnosis of fibromyalgia‚ which can cause chronic muscle pain and migraines‚ created physical and financial obstacles. The scholarship, she said, will help greatly as she pursues her academic path. Currently, Ms. Bambrick is the social-media manager for the Montauk Lighthouse, a job that, she said, she loves and hopes to keep after getting her degree.
Ms. Minardi said that the two women received the most votes from the L.V.I.S. committee, whose 10 members were struck by their essays and dogged commitment to pursuing higher education.