Poetry Chapbook Scholarship Winner!
We here at Toho Publishing are thrilled to announce the first Dr. E. Benenson Scholarship in Poetry recipient. The recipient of this scholarship will get to attend our poetry chapbook course and will then have their chapbook published. Congratulations, Aleasha!
About the Recipient
Aleasha Quzack, a graduate from the University of the Arts with a BFA in Creative Writing (Poetry), will use the scholarship to work on a poetry collection that celebrates Philadelphia and discusses generational trauma through the use of African-American Vernacular English. She wishes to publish her collection, Next Hood Over, so that her community can see their dialect and stories reflected in contemporary literature.
About the Scholarship
The Dr. E. Benenson Scholarship in Poetry was established by a generous donation from Dr. E. Benenson’s family to honor her memory. By allowing free participation in Toho Publishing’s chapbook course, this need-based scholarship supports promising poets seeking assistance in polishing and publishing their work.
A devoted wife and loving mother, Dr. E. Benenson was a very successful nurse, entrepreneur, and businesswoman who held a doctorate in Gerontology from Columbia University. Born in Jerusalem, Dr. E. Benenson opened her first nursing home in her own house in Queens, New York, where she was the cook, nurse, counselor, and administrator. Through sacrifice and vision, she grew her modest initiative into several nursing homes and rehabilitation centers, helping thousands of patients and their families.
Dr. E. Benenson strongly believed that, given the opportunity, any determined and courageous individual could flourish; for that reason, she supported many charitable ventures, both Jewish and otherwise, throughout the course of her life.
Toho Publishing is incredibly appreciative of her family’s support.
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