Meleika Amos Captures the
Cohen Scholarship
Joel Cohen's classmates can attest to the school spirit he displayed all through high school and well into adulthood. He loved Huntington High School and was known far and wide as one of its proudest and most successful graduates. The legendary local business was so successful his family endowed a generous scholarship fund to perpetuate his memory at his alma mater.
This year the fund presented a $2,000 award to senior Meleika Amos. The teenager is headed to Nassau County Community College to study fashion. The senior has studied fashion at the high school and Wilson Tech and was among the group of students invited to Washington, DC by First Lady Michelle Obama last year.
Mr. Cohen was born in Huntington and was as thoroughly a Blue Devil as any person can be. A 1939 Huntington graduate, Mr. Cohen was an excellent student and a key member of several athletic teams, including the powerful football squad led by storied head coach William Class. He later served a long stretch as president of Huntington's Alumni Association.
An old-fashioned, non-mechanical megaphone that Mr. Cohen used to whip fellow students into a frenzy during athletic events is in the collection of the Huntington's School Heritage Museum.
Mr. Cohen, who owned a local business products company, was deeply involved in the community and many of its organizations. It was in this spirit of service to others that the Cohen family created the Joel H. and Selma D. Cohen Vocational Scholarship. The first award was presented in 1993 following Mr. Cohen's death.
Mr. Cohen's widow, Selma was unable to travel from her Florida home to Huntington for the presentation. "Selma would have loved to present the award herself this year," family friend Martha Grill said. "The young graduate receiving this scholarship award certainly makes Huntington High School proud of her accomplishments. Mrs. Swaim would be honored to follow her in her fashion career."
Mr. Cohen's contributions to Huntington are commemorated in Heckscher Park. It is there that a Japanese cheery tree was planted in his honor. It is accompanied by a descriptive plaque.