Monika Lasocha

Monika Lasocha of Elmwood Park, NJ is a Literature major with a concentration in Creative Writing. She is pursuing Teacher Certification in secondary education and a minor in Psychology. Monika is a member of Chi Alpha Epsilon, Kappa Delta Pi and Sigma Tau Delta. She is interested in photography and writing. Monika is a manager in a retail children’s wear store and teaches religious education. She says, “Receiving this scholarship, which I am extremely thankful for, allows me to focus more on my school work and continue my education instead of being so heavily focused on working to pay tuition.” Monika has a 3.32 grade point average.

Awarded Scholarships

2013

Wojciechowski-Dembia Scholarship

Sofia Wojciechowski was born in 1917, the oldest of four children of Polish immigrants. Sofia grew up in Mahwah, NJ and in 1945 married Edward Dembia, a purchasing agent for Maxwell House Coffee. Together they built a home in Mahwah.

Sofia worked as a legal secretary, then obtained NJ real estate and insurance licenses. She was the owner and operator of Ramsey Interstate Realty and Insurance for many years. Sofia was notoriously frugal and a hard worker. “She took pride in recounting that her initial salary as a legal secretary was $5 per week,” according to a July, 2010 article in the Villadom Times. “She promptly opened a Christmas Club account and tried to save $1 per week for the 50 weeks of the Club. She recalled that in that first year she had saved ‘only’ $48.”

Sofia and Ed were active in the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, where they maintained ties with Poland and worked to keep Polish traditions alive in the parish. They traveled to Poland often and hosted Polish relatives when they visited the United States. The Dembias routinely sent packages of hard-to-find goods to relatives in Poland during the years of communist rule.

Edward Dembia died in 1988 and Sofia died in 2010 at the age of 93. In her will, Sofia created scholarship funds at Don Bosco High School, Felician College and Ramapo College. The Wojciechowski-Dembia Scholarship at Ramapo is a permanently endowed fund for students to “pursue any course of study.” Whenever possible, Sofia desired that the scholarship “be given to students of Polish descent or students demonstrating a continuing interest in Polish culture.”