Continue to do great things

The Phillip and Christine Gore Family Foundation (The “Gore Family Foundation”) regards education as being central to Jamaica’s development and has therefore awarded more than one hundred academic scholarships to students over the past sixteen years. These scholarships have helped to afford deserving tertiary students facing financial challenges at The Mico University College (The “Mico”), The University of the West Indies (“UWI”) and at the University of Technology (“UTECH”), financial assistance, helping them to stay in school, focus on their studies, and in many cases, change the trajectory of their lives forever. Two Gore Scholars who the Gore Family Foundation recently caught up with are Rushaine Goulbourne (left), a 5th year PhD student at the University of Alabama, and Dr. Theophilus Nelson (right), a senior resident in obstetrics and gynaecology at the University Hospital of the West Indies. These Gore Scholars are remarkable success stories and are proof to the Gores that their investment in education in Jamaica continues to be worthwhile.

Rushaine has a BSc in Economics from UWI, and received a scholarship from the Gore Family Foundation to pursue his Masters of Science in Economics at UWI (where he graduated with distinction in 2015). Thinking back, Rushaine recounts receiving the scholarship from the Gore Family Foundation “just in time.” He had “left home on a limb,” and did not have a clear idea of how he would pay for schooling. Rushaine says that he will be “forever grateful for the contribution that was made to [his] life,” and reckons that the Gore Family Foundation put him on the path to get to where he is today. Rushaine has gone on to serve as the graduate student ambassador to the University of Alabama’s Business School, and has presented at two major conferences – the North American Regional Sciences Conference and the Southern Economic Conference – over the past few years. While Rushaine intends to become an Economics Professor in the U.S. upon obtaining his PhD, he maintains that applying his training in a manner that will serve to inspire growth and development in Jamaica will always be a focal point of his work. Rushaine is excited to be back in touch and see how he may be able to support the efforts of the Gore Family Foundation in the months and years to come.

Theophilus received a tennis scholarship from the Gore Family Foundation to attend UWI, where he pursued his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Science (MB,BS). He is now in the final year of his postgraduate program in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at UWI, and is employed as the Chief Resident in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University Hospital of the West Indies. Theophilus was also a part of the COVID-19 Task Force at the University Hospital of the West Indies where he served as a member of the Monitoring and Evaluation Committee.

Being on the tennis team at UWI, Theophilus participated in various intercollegiate competitions as well as intercampus games where he competed against the tennis teams at UWI Barbados and Trinidad. Theophilus’ time at UWI culminated with him receiving two very significant awards: The Dean’s Award for Extracurricular Activities and being named as Valedictorian for Irvine Hall.

Theophilus, like Rushaine, describes the scholarship from the Gore Family Foundation as being “nothing short of a miracle.” The scholarship came at a time when his family had become extremely vulnerable due to his father falling ill, and it allowed them to focus their energy and resources on their father’s treatment. He cannot wait to give back to the Gore Family Foundation by assisting as a coach/mentor in its tennis program and helping to provide back to school medicals for children in its Basic School Program.

Phillip and Christine Gore are so happy to be back in touch with Theophilus and Rushaine and to have their support moving forward. As Phillip Gore mentions, “getting back in touch with our Gore Scholars, and hearing of their remarkable achievements and the integral role that the Gore Family Foundation has played in getting them to where they are, has been a very rewarding and fulfilling process. We look forward to catching up with more Gore Scholars in the coming months to see where life has taken them and to gauge what opportunities may exist to integrate them into the important work that the Gore Family Foundation continues to do for Jamaica

Tags:

Leave a comment