Tandem Awards Paneno Scholarship at Annual Legacy Dinner

Jake2Tandem Properties is proud to have awarded their Sam Paneno football scholarship on Sunday, March 3rd to UC Davis Aggie football player Jake Waas at their annual “Legacy Dinner.”

Tandem’s scholarship is named after Sam Paneno, a former Tandem resident and Aggie football player. In 1999, Paneno was a reserve running back in a game against Western Oregon. During the course of the game he dislocated his right knee, and severed an artery. Several days later the leg had to be amputated. Paneno’s positive attitude during this ordeal became an inspiration to many, and Tandem continues to honor their former resident with a scholarship each year.

This year’s recipient, Jake Waas, pictured above with Tandem staff, is a UC Davis sophomore from San Dimas. He has a black belt in karate and hopes to work in sports medicine.

Scholarship

Paneno had also hoped at one time to work in sports medicine, but his own hospital experiences exhausted that idea. Today, he is a staff attorney with the Alliance for Children’s Rights. According to an L.A. Times article about Paneno, it is:

A nonprofit dedicated to protecting the rights and futures of abused and impoverished children throughout Los Angeles County, Paneno speaks up for those who would otherwise go unheard.
And he does it, his appreciative boss notes, with a passion and a fervor that belies his gentle, unassuming manner.

“Even though it probably cut his earning capacity by more than half, he saw this as an opportunity out of a commitment to the kids,” says Executive Director Janis Spire, who hired Paneno. “He’s not just talking the talk. He’s about leveling the playing field for kids who don’t have a voice.”

Athletes like Jake and Sam are why Tandem is so proud to support UC Davis Aggie Athletics.