On October 18, two standout students at Calabasas, Tomer Fine and Noelle McMorris, received PETA’s John L. Neu Tribute Scholarship. This $1,000 scholarship that was split between the two of them was awarded to them on behalf of Neu’s wife, Wendy Neu. Neu was a longstanding member of PETA and dedicated his life to facilitating animal rights. He was also the chairman of the Hugo Neu Corporation, a recycling company. The environmentalist passed away in 2013, but previous to his passing had created a fund to raise money for students who were involved in animal rights through PETA.
“John’s legacy of compassion is continued by his wife, Wendy Neu, who has helped usher in many victories for animals alongside PETA over the past three decades,” said Reilly Park, a member of PETA2, via email.
Juniors Fine and McMorris received this scholarship due to their various efforts to assist animal rights. Their club PETA2 LA County has worked to get vegan options at the school cafeteria, end animal dissection in science classrooms, and cultivate several canned food drives throughout the years.
“We stood out to them, and they wanted to give us this tribute scholarship. We sent a handwritten note to his wife after receiving the scholarship,” said McMorris.
Only one person per year usually receives this scholarship, except for in the case of Fine and McMorris, and it was a rare exception. Due to Fine and McMorris being co-presidents of PETA2 LA County, it was split between the two of them as they did equal work to earn the scholarship. In addition, they have also received one other scholarship from PETA, “The Hero to Animals Award” in 2023, which was awarded to them specifically for adding vegan options to the cafeteria menu.
“We’re very honored to have received this scholarship. We believe that we will do great things with it and it’s really just a testament to all of the work that our hub has put into animal rights and to get the ball rolling with animal rights in our communities,” said Fine.
