EASTON, Mass. -- The 52nd annual President's Dinner & Reception at Stonehill College saw more than 700 neighbors, friends and alumni gather inside the Sally Blair Ames Sports Complex on May 31. The stars of the event were two individuals hailed as being, "No Ordinary Joes," former Patriots offensive lineman Joe Andruzzi and Cumberland Farms-Gulf Oil Group CEO Joe Petrowski.
President Mark Cregan presented both of them with Stonehill's President's Award for Excellence.
One of Stonehill's highest honors, the award is presented to individuals and organizations that have made unique and outstanding contributions to public life, business and to the arts and sciences.
The event raised more than $140,000 for the Sports Complex Expansion, which will help meet the Easton, Mass., college's growing needs for appropriate facilities for athletics, health, fitness and exercise.
In 2005, Petrowski was named CEO of Gulf Oil LP and in 2008, he went on to become CEO of the now combined Gulf Oil and Cumberland Farms Group, the 37th largest private company on the Forbes 500 list. Cumberland Farms is the nation's eighth largest convenience retailer while Gulf Oil is the fastest growing petroleum distribution company in the United States, delivering over 350,000 barrels every day to 3,500 outlets over 28 states.
Petrowski is a board member of a number of influential organizations, including South Jersey Industries, the Audit, Compensation & Governance Committee, the Henry Kravis Institute for Leadership Development and the CEO Board of The New England Chapter of The American Cancer Society.
In addition, he is a trustee at his alma mater Boston College High School as well as Trinity Catholic in Brockton where he grew up. He is an active supporter and benefactor of various philanthropic and support organizations including The Rogerson Community, Camp Harborview, Bridge Over Troubled Waters and One Mission, a 501 C-3 charity lending support to families struggling with pediatric cancer.
Andruzzi, who earned three Super Bowl rings as a New England Patriot, launched the C.J. Buckley Brain Cancer Research Fund at Children's Hospital in 2003 after befriending Buckley, a teenager who was suffering with an inoperable brain tumor. His passing in late 2002 was devastating to Andruzzi and his wife, Jen. By 2006, more than $450,000 was raised for the fund.
In recognition of his contributions with the C.J. Buckley Brain Cancer Research Fund, Andruzzi received the Ed Block Courage Award in 2002 and the first Ron Burton Community Service Award in 2003.
In 2007, Andruzzi himself became stricken with cancer when he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's Burkitt's lymphoma. He then underwent the most aggressive chemotherapy treatment over a three month period at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital. He admirably fought the disease with strength and courage and his last treatment was on Aug. 6, 2007.
The following year, Andruzzi he and his wife founded the Joe Andruzzi Foundation to raise money for pediatric brain cancer research and to give financial assistance to patients and their families. Since its inception, the foundation has provided financial assistance to more than 85 cancer patients and their families, helping them make rent, mortgage and utility payments. It has also donated $275,000 to Dr. Mark Kieran at Children's Hospital Boston to help fund pediatric brain cancer research.
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