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Bino Campanini presents the Jerome P. Keuper Distinguished Alumni Award to Chip Perry.
FITV // Aayush Kapar

With over 60,000 alumni scattered throughout the globe, the Florida Tech Alumni Association has made it a priority to honor and recognize the legacy past students have left behind.

On Oct. 26, more than 500 people—including professors, faculty, alumni, and organizations that play a vital role in providing aid to Florida Tech—gathered at the 2019 Alumni Awards Gala to recognize outstanding alumni in various majors.

Award recipients included those with vast experience in their career fields as well as a continuous commitment to their alma mater.

Bino Campanini, vice president for Alumni Affairs, served as master of ceremonies and introduced the especially distinguished alumni of the evening.

“This event is a fantastic opportunity to catch up with colleagues, and a brilliant way to instill the spirit of the school and reinvigorate interest in each program,” said Robert Salonen, a 2019 Florida Tech graduate and the current director of Government Affairs and Strategic Partnerships at the university.

Others in the crowd agreed with Salonen that this was a special night that allowed individuals to return proudly to their alma mater and reminisce on past memories, but also learn about the future of the school and the growth it has seen in recent years.

After cocktails, photoops and dinner, Campanini continued as MC with lighthearted jokes as he welcomed each award recipient to the stage.

The first of five recipients was Jason Terreri, a 2001 Florida Tech undergraduate, awarded on behalf of the College of Aeronautics.

“The best advice I can give is to find someone who has the same desire and passion for your industry, and take them under your wing,” said the previous senior executive director of Syracuse Hancock International Airport. “Become a mentor, and give them an opportunity to be successful.”

While all award recipients mentioned how honored they were to be given recognition for their work and thanked the university for what it provided to them, each took on their own unique twist for their speeches.

One of the quirkier speeches came from the College of Engineering and Science awardee, Don Woodrow.

Woodrow is a distinguished 1986 Florida Tech undergraduate who is the president of Woodrow Construction LLC and also an advisory board member of civil engineering and construction advisory board at Florida Tech.

After cracking jokes about Bill Jurgens’ gray hair and poking fun at Campanini for his British accent, Woodrow concluded by asking the audience to stand up, enjoy the night and give their best impersonation of Elaine dancing from Seinfeld.

Others that received awards at the alumni gala were Monique Picou on behalf of the Nathan M. Bisk College of Business, Sherri Acanfora Ruohomaki on behalf of the College of Psychology and Liberal Arts and Gretchen L. Kelly on behalf of the College of Engineering and Science.

Picou, the senior vice president of flow and fashion for Walmart, compared Florida Tech to an ivy league university, and put emphasis on the fact that “it’s not where you start, it’s where you finish.”

Acanfora Ruohomaki, a former Florida Tech cheerleader and now the owner of K9 Kampus—a luxury dog daycare and boarding facility—concluded her speech with words of reflection: “Look at the growth and development that Dr. T. Dwayne McCay, and previously Dr. Catanese, have cultivated,” Acanfora Ruohomaki said. “It makes me want to come back here as a young collegiate and enjoy all the amenities that they have now that we didn’t have before.”

President T. Dwayne McCay stated that the alumni are “our strength” and “prove that the university did a good job.”

“Florida Tech teaches our students to work with people in teams, and in collaboration,” T. Dwayne McCay said. “Curriculum such as the senior design prepares our students to enter the workforce after graduation in a few weeks, whereas at other schools, it’s six months.”

The ceremony came to a close with the presentation of the Jerome P. Keuper Distinguished Alumni Award, the highest award bestowed upon by the Alumni Association.

Honored with such an award that remarks a reflection of a legacy of excellence was Chip Perry.

A former design engineer for Texas Instrument and founder of a top tier internet streaming service later bought out by Yahoo!

Perry was portrayed as a highly successful and memorable student from Florida Tech.

He took the guests down memory lane and recapped his journey from Florida Tech to where he is now.

Perry gave a special thanks to Ed Jonas, the designer of the Keuper statue in front of the President’s Office as well as the designer of all of the gala awards for the past five years.

“It was a true honor for Florida Tech to involve me in the design process,” Jonas said. “Although I am not a Florida Tech alumni, Brevard will always have a special place in my heart because it’s the hometown of the love of my life and it was one of the places where the last thing my father saw me accomplish was the sculpting of the Keuper statue.”

The night wrapped up with dancing and a continuation of celebrating Panther pride.

Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Keith Rowley shaking hands with Nicolás Maduro. Picture by PRESA PRESIDENTICIAL on Twitter

Over the past two years the situation has worsened in Venezuela to the point that Venezuelans have been fleeing the country in the masses to get away from Nicolás Maduro’s dictatorship.

Under Maduro’s leadership, the country has faced hyperinflation, food shortages and political chaos.

According to statistics posted by the U.N., 3.6 million Venezualens left the country between 2015 and December of 2018.

As one of the surrounding countries, Trinidad has acted as a safe haven for over 60,000 Venezualens.

Keep in mind that Trinidad’s population is 1.3 million, excluding the Venezuelans.

With most Venezualens not having documentation or passports, they must seek creative ways to sneak onto the island.

“Private boats is the go-to method for many,” said Erich Koch, a Venezualen migrant who is now a citizen of Trinidad.

Koch has been in Trinidad since 2005, but he has been around the world and traveled back and forth to Venezuela for many years before finally settling in Trinidad.

Koch made his way to Trinidad after the Trinidadian government showed interest in a building technique that was being used in Venezuela. Through Koch’s expertise in this field, he became a manager at Macon Trader Co.

Because of his position in the construction company and him being a Venezuelan native, he finds himself helping a lot of the Venezuelans find jobs and places to live.

“My labor team consists of eight to 12 guys who are registered in Trinidad,” Koch said.

In the early part of 2019, Trinidad’s government decided to register illegal Venezuelans and grant them a one year legal status to the island. This status allows them to work, have banking privileges and even have driving permits.

In this process, only the Venezuelans with clean background records were allowed to register. For the individuals who have records, they were either sent back to Venezuela or kept in immigration facilities.

While Koch said the registration of the Venezuelans was a good step for the government, he also said that there are a lot more issues involving the Venezuelans in Trinidad.

“About 75 percent of the Venezuelans that have come into Trinidad are people who were already involved in crime and have come into Trinidad looking for avenues to practice what they know [crime],” Koch said.

The crime in Trinidad has gotten to a point that people are afraid to leave their houses.

The gang violence has gotten unbearable and the drug and human trafficking have only increased since the illegal migration of criminal elements from Venezuela, according to the OSAC Trinidad and Tobago 2019 Crime and Safety Report.

“Everyone already knows how bad the crime is in Trinidad and the criminals from Venezuela have found their way into it,” Koch said.

Koch said he believes that the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, or TTPS, are not capable or equipped to handle these gangs.

Human trafficking is also one of the major acts taking place in Trinidad, especially involving teenage Venezuelan girls.

“It is the easiest way for them to make money,” Koch said. “They don’t speak English so it is easy for them to work in bars or casinos and make money doing [sex work].”

The Commissioner of Police, Gary Griffith, said in multiple interviews that he is taking the increase in crime very seriously.

In an interview on CNC3’s Morning Brew, Griffith said he already has a 78-point plan and is ready to reform the TTPS all in an attempt in the fight against crime.

Koch said he believes that this is good, but because of Trinidad’s government’s lack of involvement or concern to the increasing crime, he said he is concerned the condition of Trinidad will worsen.

“I have seen Venezuela go through the process, and Trinidad will soon end up like that,” Koch said.“The same thing that is happening in Trinidad was happening in Venezuela.”

Citizens of Trinidad are continuing to express their frustration to the government and police but minimal efforts are being taken.

Business owners are now having to take matters into their own hands by having more security at businesses and even creating police-community task forces.

One task force is the Tunapuna Police Station Community Council.

They act in the city of Tunapuna and have been a voice between both the people and the police.

Since the year began, 16 people were killed in the area of Tunapuna of which 4 were killed in one week.

While crime has always been a problem in Trinidad, Koch said he believes that it has escalated due to the influx of criminal elements from Venezuela.

Not only has crime increased, but the form of crime has broadened, from drugs to human trafficking.

While citizens like Koch are skeptical, he hopes that the police service and the government try their best to show some sort of combat against this surge in crime.

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