Elwood-John H. Glenn High School senior Lauren LaMena was named as the female winner of the 2024 Butch Dellecave Award while her fellow senior Anthony Bell was named a finalist. The Dellecave Award nominates the top male and female student-athlete in each school in Suffolk County, recognizing excellence in three categories: academics, athletics and community service. Six of those nominees are selected as finalists, and one male and one female student in the county are named winners.

Both John Glenn students attended the annual Dellecave Award brunch ceremony held on June 9 at Villa Lombardi’s in Holbrook, and were honored at the Elwood School District’s June 13 Board of Education meeting.

“Over the last 20 years, I’ve attended the Dellecave brunch every year, and on one occasion before this, we had one finalist,” Elwood Athletic Director Dave Shanahan said. “Not too bad. However, this was an exceptional year. Newsday selected six boys and six girls as finalists based on their resumes. The LaMena family and the Bell family were ecstatic to see both Lauren and Anthony chosen as finalists for this prestigious award, knowing that sitting at the tables were the best of the best student-athletes in Suffolk County. When Newsday announced that the female winner was Lauren LaMena from John Glenn, it was one of the best moments of the year for me personally, and I’m sure for her parents. The hard work, dedication and love of her family helped Lauren attain one of the best awards given out in Suffolk County. Truth be told, I shed a tear of happiness for Lauren for winning the overall Dellecave award and for Anthony Bell being recognized as a finalist.”

Date Added: 6/17/2024