Let’s Play Ball: Honoring David Suarez
The third annual David Suarez Softball Classic will be held at High School South on Saturday, July 24, at 10 a.m. Admission is free. There is no rain date. For information call 917-685-7506.
The event is held to benefit the scholarship funds set up in the memory of David Suarez, a graduate of West Windsor-Plainsboro High School, class of 1995, who lost his life on 9/11. In high school he was co-captain of the wrestling team and involved in many other athletic activities. A 1999 graduate of Penn State University, he graduated with high honors and a degree in industrial engineering. He was an Eagle Scout with Troop 40 and a volunteer with New York Cares.
On September 11, he was working on the 99th floor of the North Tower for the financial consulting firm Deloitte & Touche as a member of the Marsh Inc. Oracle Team. He is survived by parents, Carol and Ted Suarez of West Windsor, and siblings Bryan and Kristin, who now both live in Virginia.
Last year more than 100 people attended the event, which raised close to $9,”000. The inaugural event yielded close to $8,”000 for the David Suarez Family and Friends Scholarship Fund.
Suarez’ friends and classmates began the scholarship fund as their way to remember Suarez and promote the ideals that he held as important. The permanently-endowed scholarships go to two West Windsor Plainsboro High School South students. This year’s recipients at High School South were Clara Bracke and Janet Ju.
Organizers of the annual event include Michael Eskra, also a member of WW-P High School, Class of 1995, and Jeffrey Tobias, a college roommate of Suarez. After Eskra graduated from Penn State in 2000, he and Suarez shared an apartment on the upper east side of New York City. Eskra is also the webmaster, while Tobias and his wife Stephanie chair the softball event.
There are eight teams registered to play and each team has an affiliation to Suarez. The teams playing in the event include Troop 40, WWP Friends, two teams from his college fraternity, and Deloitte & Touche. Mayor Shing-fu Hsueh plans to attend.
Donations to the fund, as well as raffle prizes and gift certificates, are welcome. More information is available at www.davidsuarez.org. To make a donation, send check payable to David Suarez Scholarship Fund, KAO Educational Foundation, Box 1865, Lexington, Virginia 24450.
“”The softball event is just one way for me to remember Dave and to preserve his memory forever,”” says Tobias. “”Dave gave back to the community in so many ways and would do just about anything to help another, whether that was volunteering at a number of different community service organizations, tutoring students, or driving a friend home from college at 3 a.m.””
-Lynn Miller
David Suarez Softball Classic, Saturday, July 24, 10 a.m., at High School South. For information call 917-685-7506.
