DFI Educational Trust Ends 2012 with Notable Accomplishments David Coleman, Chair [email protected] an At-Large Scholarship Fund that began in 2013, and will make awards to students from different colleges and universities across the country. Financially, the Trust saw its D uring 2012, the DFI Educa- tional Trust achieved signifi- cant progress in programs, and financial and operational progress. Scholarships were established at two additional institutions: the University of Houston, funded by the Trust’s Berkel & Company Contractors Inc. Scholarship and the University of Cincinnati, funded by the newly-established Larry P. Rayburn Civil Engineering Scholarship, created with a generous endowment from Richard Goettle, Inc. This brings the total number of schools in the scholarship program to seven. A total of $74,500 in scholarships was awarded during 2012, the highest yearly amount since the founding of the Trust in 2006. In addition, the Trust created assets grow approximately 13% during 2012, in part due to favorable investment results, but also thanks to successful fundraising efforts such as the annual Pleasanton, California Golf Outing, organized by Byrl Williams; the annual Pittsburgh Golf Outing led by Seth Pearlman; and the 7th Annual Gala Dinner, held in November in New Jersey, the proceeds of which benefit the Stanley Merjan City College of New York (CCNY) Civil Engineering Scholarship. On the administrative front, the Trust hired a new administrator to manage the day-to-day operations, insuring efficiency, continuity and accountability. Finally, the Trust board saw the addition of new members Roger Healy from Richard Annual Gala Fundraiser Dinner The DFI Educational Trust held its Annual Gala Fundraising Dinner at the Chart House, in Weehawken, N.J. in November, and raised $20,000, with more than 100 guests attending. The event, now in its seventh year, raises scholarship funds for undergraduate engineering students at The City College of New York (CCNY). Since 2010, the scholarship has been known as the Stanley Merjan CCNY Civil Engineering Scholarship Fund, in honor of Stanley Merjan, senior consultant with Underpinning & Foundation Skanska (UFS), an inspiration and mentor to young engineers throughout the con- struction industry. In a ceremony held during the event, four CCNY students were presented with scholarship awards by DFI Educational Trust Chair, David Coleman. This year’s recipients are Maurice Diong, Tara Saber- Khiabani, Jose E. Santana-Ruiz and Choong Leong-Ye. 32 • DEEP FOUNDATIONS • JAN/FEB 2013 Goettle, Inc. and former DFI presidents Tracy Brettmann and Rudy Frizzi. New Board Members Tracy Brettmann and Rudy Frizzi, both past presidents of the DFI Board of Trustees, have been appointed to serve on the DFI Educational Trust Board. Brettmann is a vice president/regional manager for Berkel and Company Contractors in Houston. He has been involved with the design, installation and quality control of deep foundations for more than 20 years. Brettmann received his B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Nebraska and his M.S. in Geotechnical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. He is a registered Professional Engineer in Texas and Louisiana. He is a past president of DFI and was previously the chairman of DFI’s Augered Cast-in-Place Pile Committee. His term on the DFI Trust Board will expire in December 2014. David Coleman, scholarship recipient Choong Leong-Ye and Theresa Rappaport The gala was capped wi th a presentation by the legendary Clyde Baker, who spoke about the challenges of building deep foundations for tall buildings. Baker related his professional involvement in the construction of many internationally known structures such as the Willis Tower in Chicago and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the tallest building in the world. For more information on this and other Trust fundraising efforts, please visit the Trust’s new website at www.trust.dfi.org.
