Colorado student surprised with college scholarship from Amazon
The greatest accomplishments always begin with a question, because curiosity is the catalyst for action. That was the message Amazon engineers had for a room full of Grandview High School students in Colorado. One of whom was Bruno Denegri.
"STEM was always, like, rooted into me from a young age by my parents. Math interested me a lot. Physics was amazing to me," said Bruno.
He says he got his passion for science, technology, engineering and math from his mom, which is why it was hard to say goodbye to her. Bruno's dad is a diplomat from Peru. Recently, he was reassigned back to Lima and took Bruno's mom and two sisters with him. Bruno chose to stay behind and finish his education in the United States.
"It was one of those things that, like, it's unfortunate that it happened, but it's the sacrifice I was willing to take for my education," said Bruno.
He lives with his aunts, who, curiously, were also at the Amazon lecture.
"I recognized their phones and their nails, and then I saw this one peep through the window," said Bruno.
But never one to be deterred or distracted from an educational opportunity, Bruno listened to the career advice the Amazon engineers gave astutely. And when it came time for Q&A, he asked them a question.
But this whole thing was a ruse, because while his classmates were rewarded for their inquiries with an Amazon tablet, Bruno's prize was a little more.
Bruno got the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship for all his hard work and dedication to his education. It's $10,000 a year for four years and an internship at Amazon. Bruno says he's going to use it to go to the Colorado School of Mines.
Amazon and Grandview High School had set up a lecture to surprise Bruno with the scholarship.
His aunts were live-streaming the whole event from their phones to Bruno's parents in Lima.
"I am very very proud for Bruno and his achievements," said Bruno's father Roland Denegri.
"I love you so much Bruno... te quiero mucho," said Bruno's Mother Jessica Perez.
Bruno, just can't believe what all his curiosity has earned him.
"It's amazing," said Bruno. "I can't put into words how much I'm thankful for it."