Kings Park HS Student Wins LI Music And Entertainment Hall Of Fame Scholarship

KINGS PARK, NY — The Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame (LIMEHOF) recently awarded $1K scholarships to 10 graduating students from Long Island, the hall of fame announced.

Giuliana Gallone from Kings Park, a graduate of Kings Park High School, was one of the scholarship winners.

Gallone said she has committed to the Berklee College of Music in the fall and plans on being a professional music major and a musical theater minor.

"While at Berklee, I plan on developing my skills in all areas of the industry and taking advantage of all the opportunities that Berklee has to offer," Gallone said in a news release. "I look forward to emerging myself in the Berklee atmosphere and surrounding myself with my people."

During her time in the Kings Park School District, Gallone partcipated as the lead in "Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief" as Percy Jackson, "SpongeBob: The Musical" as Patrick Star, and "Little Shop of Horrors" as Audry II the plant. She was also in her high school marching band as a field major.

She participated in Concert Band, Symphonic Winds, Chorus, and Chamber Choir. As a freshman, she was elected as historian for the Tri-M music honor society. From there, she sat on all positions. As a senior, she was elected president of Tri-M. She was also inducted in the Thespians National Honor Society. From 2016 to present, she started attending Rock n Roll U’s Band Performance Program. She participated as a lead singer and performed at many venues singing cover music and at times played paid shows with the band. This gave her the experience to play for different communities of people and support many different charities that needed entertainment.

"I plan on sending in self-tapes to musicals in order to get an audition experience," Gallone said. "While doing this I’ll also be working on my first album. I currently have two singles of original music that have been released on all music platforms. The songs are under Gi Gallone and are entitled 'I Don’t Wanna Fall' and 'Admire from Afar.'

After graduating Berklee, she plans on auditioning for Broadway, where she hopes to work for a few years, she said.

"Through music and acting, I am hoping I can show others that they are capable of anything," Gallone said. "No matter what they go through. Live your song, take hold of those challenges, dream and dream big no matter what the sacrifice. Everyone goes through something. Let that something be the strength that drives your success to do what you love."

The full list of LIMEHOF scholarship winners were:

• Cooper Arbisi (Massapequa, Massapequa High School)
• Stephen Buff (Center Moriches, Center Moriches High School, Flute)
• Cody Chelune (Levittown, Island Trees High School, Vocal, Tenor)
• Jocelyn Chiu (Albertson, Herricks High School, Instrument: Harp)
• Giuliana Gallone (Kings Park, Kings Park High School, Vocal/Bass Clarinet, Guitar & Piano)
• Dara Gordon (Dix Hills, Commack High School Vocal/Musical Theater)
• Emily Helbock (Sayville, Sayville High School, Instrument: French Horn/Piano)
• Ryan Loughlin (Farmingdale, Farmingdale High School, Vocal, Bass/Baritone, Cello/Piano)
• Aidan Passaro (Mt. Sinai, Mt. Sinai High School, Vocal, Tenor/Piano)
• Julian Zuzzolo (Sea Cliff, North Shore High School, Percussion)

For the second year in a row, a Pat DeRosa Memorial Scholarship was awarded in memory of LIMEHOF inductee Pat DeRosa.

Peter Hoss from Greenlawn, a graduate of Harborfields High School who plays tenor saxophone, won the scholarship.

"We are thrilled to award these scholarships to such talented and dedicated young musicians," said Tom Needham, LIMEHOF’s educational programs director, in a news release. "Supporting the next generation of music students as they embark on their college journeys is at the heart of our mission. These scholarships not only recognize their hard work and passion but also reinforce our commitment to nurturing musical talent and education within our community. We can't wait to see what these young people will accomplish in their musical careers."

This is the first year that LIMEHOF has expanded its scholarships to include not only music but also the performing arts. This also marks the largest number of scholarships awarded in a single year since the program began.

LIMEHOF has awarded tens of thousands of scholarships to Long Island high school students since its inception. The students submit applications that are judged by LIMHOF’s education committee, chaired by board member Needham.

This year had a record number of applications received. Students from schools in Queens and Brooklyn are eligible to apply in addition to those from Nassau and Suffolk counties.