Harry and Peggy Boutet Scholarship

The Harry and Peggy Boutet Scholarship recognizes the memory of two long-time volunteers in the Tonawanda, NY, community. Mr. and Mrs. Boutet were grandparents to Mike Andriatch, vice president for Advancement and president of the Brockport Foundation at SUNY Brockport. Mr. Andriatch and his wife Katie, a teacher in the Brockport Central School District and a lecturer in the Department of Education and Human Development at the college, established this award.

Mr. Andriatch recalled his grandfather’s love for the proper use of the English language shared during exchanges on grammar over dinners, on car rides, and in conversation. Mr. Boutet inspired two of his seven grandchildren to enter communication-based careers.

Mr. Boutet retired in 1977 from Worthington Compressor where he managed the Parts-Service Division. Before and after his retirement, he was an active parishioner at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Towanda.

Following his retirement, he volunteered for the Kenmore-Tonawanda Meals-on-Wheels program, and was a docent with the Buffalo Zoo and its Zoo-mobile. He also volunteered at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society, where he earned a reputation as a specialist in the history of the Erie Canal and the Pan-American Exposition. He passed away in 1992.

Mrs. Boutet, whose given name was Helenea but received the nickname Peggy as a child, worked at the VA Hospital in Batavia before her marriage in 1940. Later, she worked for the J. N. Adam Department Store in Buffalo, first as a sales woman and then as a trainer of new employees.

Like her husband, she was active at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, and together they volunteered with Meals on Wheels of Erie County, with the Buffalo Zoo, including its Zoo-mobile, and with the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society. After her husband’s passing, she continued her volunteer work. She passed away at the age of 96 in 2012.

Mr. and Mrs. Boutet had two daughters, seven grandchildren, and 18 great-grandchildren.

The Harry and Peggy Boutet Scholarship recognizes an outstanding Brockport student from the Department of English (even years) or the Department of Communication (odd years), who has demonstrated the potential for excellence in a career in communication or writing.

Qualified applicants will be junior or senior students in the year for which the award is made, exhibit a concern for grammar in all forms of communication, demonstrate leadership and exemplary behavior, and submit a 1,000-word essay on why they deserve this award.