EMS Council of N.J. Awards Scholarships to Medical Students

The EMS Council of New Jersey (EMSCNJ) has awarded six Gail Lawrence Memorial Scholarships this year to graduate students who are EMSCNJ-affiliated volunteers pursuing medical-related careers. The $1,000 grant was established in memory of Lawrence, a mobile intensive care nurse, advanced practice nurse and educator with Rutgers University.

The 2018 recipients:

• Elena Andreou, Glen Rock Volunteer Ambulance Corps. A 2013 graduate of Glen Rock High School, Andreou went on to major in pre-med track Public Health studies at Johns Hopkins University and graduate in 2017. She is now studying Medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical College.

• Brett Biebelberg, Springfield First Aid Squad. Biebelberg graduated from Jonathan Dayton High School in 2012 and Harvard College in 2016 with a degree in Government. He now studies Medicine at Harvard University Extension School.

• Jennifer Bruckstein, Berkeley Heights Volunteer First Aid Squad and Long Hill First Aid Squad. Bruckstein is a 2010 graduate of Union County Academy for Information Technology who then earned an accounting degree from The College of New Jersey in 2014. She now is enrolled in the Physician Assistant program at Methodist University.

• Karolyn Buckridee, Scotch Plains Rescue Squad and Fanwood Rescue Squad. Buckridee graduated Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School in 2010, and earned a bachelor’s degree in Classics (Ancient History) from Rutgers University in 2014. She is studying Medicine at the American University of Antigua, College of Medicine.

• Shyam Kurian, Montgomery EMS. Kurian graduated Hillsborough High School in 2013, and in 2017 earned a degree in Cell Biology and Neuroscience from Rutgers University. Kurian now attends the Mayo Clinic School of Medicine.

• Akshay Reddy, Morganville First Aid & Rescue Squad. A 2014 graduate of Monmouth County Academy of Allied Health and Science, Reddy graduated from St. Bonaventure University in 2018 with a major in Biology and a minor in Business Administration. Reddy now is enrolled in George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Science, studying Medicine.

The 89-year-old nonprofit EMSCNJ/New Jersey State First Aid Council represents 20,000 volunteers affiliated with 250+ EMS agencies throughout the Garden State.