MONTEGO BAY, St James — Etana Brown’s 15-year-old sister Martina dreamed of being a doctor. When she died from cancer three years ago Etana, a grade 10 student of Irwin High School in St James, vowed she would honour her sister’s memory by becoming a paediatrician. A $50,000 scholarship from Rotary Club of Montego Bay has taken her closer to that goal.

“From she was smaller she wanted to become a doctor and since she is no longer here I have the chance to pursue her dream,” Etana said.

She was speaking with the Jamaica Observer after the awards ceremony that was held in the boardroom of KPMG’s Fairview location.

“I want to be what she wanted to be and do what she wanted to, which is making our mother proud and helping other children that are sick. I think that I am able and I will pursue that dream of hers,” Etana continued.

Memories of her sister’s battle with cancer drive her.

“I had to see her fight every day; every day of her life that I was around her I had to see her fight cancer. I had no idea or knowledge of how to help her,” the teenager said mournfully.

“[I want] to be able to help other children who are sick to become better or to feel as if they are still appreciated and valued,” Etana explained.

She said the scholarship will make a significant impact.

“This is an opportunity that I’ve been wanting, been dying for. I’ve been wanting to have a scholarship to help me to attain certain things that I’ve found difficulties in having for school,” she said.

“Even now — although it is not hard as years before — it was hard for me to attend school, hard for me to get the necessary resources that I should be able to have to complete certain tasks in school, like my textbooks,” Etana added.

She was among six students who received scholarships. The funds will mostly be used to defray the cost of Caribbean Secondary Examination Council (CSEC) tests. Among the six, four were present at the donation ceremony.

Rajaie Parnell, who also attends Irwin High, dreams of being a soldier.

“First and foremost I have to thank God as this is a great opportunity to further my education. Yes, sometimes I have financial challenges going back to school so this will definitely help me,” he said.

Moneisha Small, who is also a grade ten student of Irwin High, is looking forward to how the scholarship will help her pursue her goals. She has still not decided if she will be doing law or accounting.

“I expect it to make my life a lot better. It was hard for me to come to school and to get the resources, and I know that with this scholarship I will be able to get the things that I need — like books and a lot more — and it will be able to pay for my subjects,” she stated.

Criswaynena Muir, a grade eight student of Herbert Morrison, also collected a scholarship on the day. She spoke of how happy and grateful she is for the support. Scholarships were also granted to Deanna Bucknall and Amory Gayle, both students from Mount Alvernia High School.

The club’s Past President Dominica Pradere, who coordinated the scholarship committee, explained how the recipients were chosen.

“We ask our various schools in St James to send us the names of students who would benefit from a scholarship. They have to be of good character, hard-working, serious students, and have financial need,” she said.

“They might not be at the top of the class but [they should nevertheless be] children that really need the help and look like they are going to treat the scholarship seriously and use it wisely,” she added.

The funds for the scholarship are provided through a special account that is held by the club. Once scholarship recipients are selected, the money is dispersed to the schools where it is used to support the students.

“Some of our students that have had scholarships really start surging ahead once they are certain they are able to come to school every day — and if they need a lunch money, that will be there as well,” Pradere said.