Students and faculty gathered in a classroom at Valdosta State University for an intimate and meaningful award ceremony Monday evening. Dr. Codrina Cozma, Associate Professor of English currently teaching at the SGSC Entry Program on the VSU campus, hosted the event.
The Diana Alexandra grant has been awarded since 2012 by Heaven Preview Foundation, Inc. to meritorious students worldwide in memory of Codrina Cozma’s late sister, Diana Alexandra. At the ceremony, Dr. Cozma gave a little background on the foundation and what it means to her. For years, Dr. Cozma had prayed for a baby sister.
“She was born as an answer to my prayers,” Dr. Cozma said.
But her life was cut short by illness, and at just nine years old, Diana Alexandra lost her life. She was laid to rest on November 23, 1996 and, at that time, Dr. Cozma and her mother and father vowed to establish a foundation in her honor. She and her parents actively sponsor the Heaven Preview foundation, which was officially approved by the IRS as a 501(c)(3) public charity in 2011, and which funds the Diana Alexandra grant.
This year, on the same day Diana Alexandra’s body was buried, this award was presented to three lucky students in remembrance of Diana Alexandra and in celebration of her life that was full of faith, joy, love, and the desire to learn.
The recipients of the award were chosen from many applicants and were measured against a strict set of requirements. A high GPA, low-income, determination, and tenacity were important factors when choosing the recipients. In addition, applicants were required to write an essay describing their life and the adversities they are battling in their effort to get an education.
The winners, Devion Smith (who was the first male to receive the award since it has been given), Nia Phillips, and Maria Suviri each expressed gratitude for their $250 scholarship grants and talked about their plans to further their education.
They each presented a video that held a special message to them and inspired them. The close setting, personal messages, and laid-back presentation helped create a warm experience that coincided with the heartfelt origin of the foundation. The event was also attended by Ms. Valerie Webster, Director of the Valdosta SGSC Program, Rev. George Bennett, retired pastor from First Christian Church of Valdosta, and Mariya Chakir, Arabic lecturer at VSU, who handed the grant diplomas and the checks to the winners.
Dr. Cozma and her family have used the foundation and scholarship as a tool to help those in need, in memory of Diana Alexandra. This effort reflects a scripture that Dr. Cozma quoted for the award ceremony taken from John 12:24: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”
Not only does the scholarship represent the fruit borne by the memory of Dr. Cozma’s late sister, but also the award to the students is the fruit of their hard work and efforts.
The Heaven Preview Foundation is always accepting donations, and Dr. Cozma is hoping to increase the award amounts in the future. To make a tax-exempt donation, learn more about the foundation, or to volunteer, visit www.heavenpreviewfoundation.org.
Earlier this year, Douglas Now reported on a life or death situation that Dr. Cozma was facing. Dr. Cozma suffers from muscular dystrophy combined with scoliosis, and has been wheelchair-bound for most of her life. For years, she used a specific cushion manufactured in 1997 by a company named Roho, a 9X9 high profile cushion. It was firm enough to support her, making it easy for her to breathe and function, and soft enough to protect her skin and prevent numbness.
In 2013, when her 1997 cushion went out, Dr. Cozma attempted to replace the cushion only to find out that particular 1997 model had been discontinued. All her attempts to use other current cushions manufactured by Roho and other companies have led to inappropriate positioning which causes her difficulty breathing, imbalance, skin sores, and diminished mobility.
Because Dr. Cozma cannot breathe correctly or receive a steady blood flow without that specific 1997 cushion manufactured by Roho, her life is truly in jeopardy. During 2014 and early 2015, former Senior Vice President of Roho David J. McCausland corresponded with Dr. Cozma and denied the request for a custom cushion that Dr. Cozma’s medical team had sent Roho in the fall of 2014.
However, a new development may mean hope for Dr. Cozma.
Roho has been bought by an international company, Permobil, which has opened the floor for negotiations with her. Roho has informed Dr. Cozma that they have been researching a new chemical formulation for two years, and Dr. Cozma volunteered to test these prototypes. Dr. Cozma says the new chemical formulation is very promising, and that she and Roho are constantly assessing all the issues involved in the viability of this new material.
The company is currently showing great concern for Dr. Cozma and her situation, and Dr. Cozma is committed to assist this research endeavor because she is convinced that the chemical formulation that can help her will also be a breakthrough for millions of other patients with neuro-muscular disorders like hers.
However, there are still obstacles that Dr. Cozma is facing in this process. Since 1997, when her original cushion was manufactured, the tooling in the manufacturing plant at Roho has changed, which makes it very difficult to reproduce the shape and size Dr. Cozma needs. At this time, Roho has shown willingness to try to produce prototypes with the new chemical formulation, but within the limitations of their current tools. If no solution works this way, Dr. Cozma may have to fund a lengthy and complex design engineering process to get a customized cushion produced with the exact features she needs.
Dr. Cozma feels truly grateful for the responsiveness of the Roho staff after Roho was purchased by Permobil, and she is determined to go all the way in a research process that will save not only her life, but many others.
Dr. Codrina Cozma