The Aldo Madrigrano Scholarship at St. Joseph High School, now Saint Joseph Catholic Academy, was initiated by Thomasina Madrigrano after the untimely death of her husband Aldo M. Madrigrano in 1986 at the age of 59. Mrs. Madrigrano and her children Gina ’72, Tom ’73, Kathy ’77 and Aldo ’81 have funded this scholarship and several other projects in the community over the years.
Aldo M. Madrigrano was the third child born to Eugene and Mimi Madrigrano in Kenosha. Eugene and Mimi were born in Italy and immigrated to this country at early ages for a better life. They worked hard and raised a family in the Italian Columbus Park neighborhood in Kenosha. After serving in the Army in World War II, Aldo returned to Kenosha to work in the family business, EF Madrigrano, a Kenosha Beer Distributorship. In 1963, Aldo and several investors purchased the 7UP Bottling Company in Racine and grew the business until it was sold in 1986. The family had already purchased W.O.W. Distributing Inc in Waukesha and Beer Capitol Distributing in Milwaukee in 1985. The original business, EF Madrigrano , started in 1933 with a $600 truck that delivered the initial four products to customers, and developed through the years to include hundreds of beer products, as well as waters and wines.
Thomasina was the youngest daughter of Tom and Sarah Montemurro who also immigrated to the United States. Her father Tom owned and operated Montemurro Brothers Golden Bell Dairy in Kenosha for many years. The EF Madrigrano and Montemurro Brothers businesses were
located on 56th Street in Kenosha, right across the street fro eachother. The business was sold in the early 1960’s when Tom passed away. Thomasina graduated high school from St. Clara Academy in Sinsinawa, WI and attended Rosary College. In 1953 she married Aldo and together they raised and educated their children at Kenosha Catholic grade schools, SJHS, Carthage College and UW Parkside. Thomasina passed away in 2015.
Our family is committed to giving back to the communities that have been part of our family success. We support Saint Joseph Catholic Academy and all of the work they do to further education and identify Kenosha on the map.
Purpose
The purpose of this scholarship is to award a student who has demonstrated academic and/or church and/or community leadership skills. The scholarship will be awarded each fall term and applied to the tuition of that student.
Eligibility
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An 8th grade student entering St. Joseph Catholic Academy as a freshman for the upcoming school year
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A member of Mt. Carmel Church (1st consideration)
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Student of Italian descent (highly considered)
Scholarship Requirements
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Be registered at St. Joseph Catholic Academy as a freshman for the following school year.
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Enclose a letter of recommendation from a teacher, principal and/or parish priest.
Selection Process
The Scholarship Award Selection Committee will review applications. Scholarship money will be sent directly to St. Joseph Catholic Academy to be applied to the recipient’s tuition.
All relevant documents must submitted together by Friday, April 9, 2021 with the scholarship application to be considered complete.