DOREEN Richards did not choose teaching as her first job; it, in fact, chose her. Fresh-faced from the halls of university in 1982, it was dentistry that made her vision board. That desire was not to be fulfilled, however, as two things happened: The scholarship to the dental school she waited for anxiously for did not come through, but also, she fell madly in love with the classroom.

Excited and on the verge of tears last week as she accepted a cheque with the words, “You are debt-free,” from First Global Bank (FGB), she could not help but smile, thinking back at her over-four-decade journey in the classroom.

FGB, in honour of Education Month, randomly paid the outstanding loan amounts for teachers as a way of giving back to the profession, helping teachers go further.

Richards recalled the moments that led to her joining the noble profession.

“After I did my science degree I decided I was not going to teach because I was waiting to do dentistry, but the scholarship wasn’t ready. It so happens that my former principal at Immaculate Conception High kept calling me, asking, ‘Why don’t you come and try teaching?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t want to teach; I want to do dentistry!’ ” Richards said.

Noting the power of prayer she reminisced, “I always prayed, saying, ‘Lord, if it’s not dentistry [then] put me where I feel fulfilled, where I’d be happy.’ ” Eventually, she answered the call.

After her first week at Immaculate, Richards admitted that she did not know that she wanted to teach, but she was so thrilled with the profession that she’s never left.

“This is what I want to do,” she remarked.

One of two educators fêted by FGB, the banking arm of GraceKennedy Financial Group, Richards noted that while it is a rewarding profession, it has its challenges.

“I think some of the times you want to have the resources to do what you want to do, so that can be a challenge. Sometimes you want to make the subject areas far more exciting so you’re limited by what you can get your hands on,” she said.

She reflected that, despite the challenges, her students are very much involved and want to learn, going as far as they can go.

“That makes it all the more rewarding. There’s just something about seeing my children excited about learning; seeing them want to achieve that just does it for me — especially the ones that make a turn for the good,” she remarked.

She told the story of a former student who definitively confirmed that she had “resigned from the chemistry and physics exam” with the goal of not attending her then Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examinations. Stunned, yet supportive, Richards took her by the hand, encouraging her that she did not have to study everything to pass the exam, she only needed to know enough to go in and do her absolute best. This was less than two months before the examination.

With Richards’ coaching, the student gave it her all.

Eventually that once-flustered child who had said, “I can’t do it,” in less than six weeks had changed her tune.

“She passed the two exams ennuh, and went on to Portmore Community College to do CAPE [Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination] in the sciences and got ones [distinctions]), but she was just at a space where she just felt she could not do anything. She came back and said, ‘Miss, thank you for believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself.’

FGB New Kingston Branch Manager Mishka Samuels Francis, in handing over the commemorative cheques, noted the vital role teachers play in helping our nation’s youth excel.

“As we celebrate Education Month we really thought of a way to give back to the ones who have the greatest profession of all. It was an easy decision to delight our teachers,” she said.

First Global Bank repaid her loan balance in full, spending over $400,000 on loan repayments.

As part of their ongoing thrust to continuously impact the communities they serve, all year long First Global Bank will be giving back, celebrating 22 years of banking in Jamaica to help both their clients and their communities go further.