When Nick Pipino, a Drexel senior, was murdered while working at an off-campus restaurant in 1992, it rocked the University community. A well-known figure at Drexel, Pipino was fun-loving and adventurous, with a bright future. The night he was killed, Pipino had gone to talk to a man outside the restaurant who was causing a disturbance. The man, who had occasionally worked at the restaurant as well, fatally stabbed Pipino when he tried to send him on his way.
Like Pipino, U.S. Navy Commander Brian Connett, BS ’99, grew up in Philadelphia. The year Pipino died, he was beginning his college search. He chose Drexel because it was in Philly, he knew he would get a high-quality education and because people told him he couldn’t do it.
“I heard from many people that Drexel was an unreasonable and unattainable goal for a city kid coming from a blue-collar family,” he says.
That didn’t discourage Connett. He got in and became involved on campus. He joined crew, was elected to student government, was active in Greek life and took part in community service events. Along the way, he met some of the people who had known Pipino.
Then, in 1998, Connett became directly tied to Pipino’s legacy. He was paying for college largely on his own, so he wrote an essay to apply for a scholarship — the Nicholas P. Pipino Memorial Scholarship. The fund was established in 1993 by Pipino’s friends and family to celebrate his life, preserve his memory and help stop senseless acts of violence. Connett received the scholarship; he says Pipino’s friends and family told him that his essay reflected Pipino’s own ideals and vision. He no longer has the winning essay, but Connett is confident that it said the same thing that he says today when leading sailors or midshipmen: “Fight hard for those who can’t fight for themselves.”
Over the past 25 years, dozens of students have received the Nicholas P. Pipino Memorial Scholarship Fund. Recipients have gone on to — among other things — serve in the White House through co-op and work in leadership roles for well-known financial and engineering companies. You can support Pipino’s legacy and future Drexel students by giving to the Fund. Visit drexel.edu/givenow, input your gift amount and indicate that your gift is for the Nicholas P. Pipino Memorial Scholarship.
Every now and then, Connett thinks of Pipino and the Pipino Scholarship. “It reminds me of a time when Pipino’s family’s life was drastically altered, and of a time when I made a drastic change in my life to serve,” he says. “This scholarship exists because Pipino found himself in a situation where he could not win the fight, but his memory and his family are a strength that is multiplied a million-fold.”
Pipino’s memory and his legacy continue today, with students like Matt Matwiejczyk, a senior studying mechanical engineering. Like both Pipino and Connett before him, the Philadelphia native is active on campus and works outside of school to help pay for his education. Last year, he became one of the latest recipients of the Nicholas P. Pipino Memorial Scholarship.
Matwiejczyk knew nothing of Nick Pipino when he came to Drexel; he wasn’t yet born the year Pipino was murdered. But, like Connett before him, he had the opportunity to meet several of Pipino’s friends and family members after receiving the award.
“I am honored to be able to call myself a recipient,” he says. “The best part was learning about Pipino and who he was. He had such an impact on many people and was an incredible person. You definitely feel more of an appreciation for the scholarship knowing the family and the cause behind it.”
Matwiejczyk isn’t sure what he wants to do post-graduation, but he knows that he wants to give back. He has always believed in helping others, and receiving the Pipino Scholarship enhances that commitment.
“It’s pretty remarkable that I have the opportunity to be part of such an important scholarship,” he says, “especially seeing how positively it has impacted my life and imagining how much it has helped others. I hope to one day be able to repay the generosity that has been bestowed on me.”