Beecher Foundation awards 45 scholarships to St Catherine students

For 23 years, the Beecher Foundation has left a lasting mark on education in St Catherine, rewarding academic excellence and helping promising students make the transition from primary to secondary school.

Last Sunday, the foundation awarded 45 scholarships to students from 11 primary schools across the parish during a service at the Oneness Apostolic Church in Spanish Town.

The awards, valued at more than $2 million, were spearheaded by Pauline Beecher, who provided the cash donations, while her husband, Claude Beecher, donated trophies for the special awardees.

All 45 students received financial assistance for their studies. Several top performers also received additional trophies and cash awards.

Leading the recipients was Gabrielle Alaina Dajue of Crescent All-Age School. She received the Mavis and Clifford Beecher Award, named in honour of the couple after whom the foundation was named. She also received the Myrtle Irving and Veronica Dixon trophies for achieving the highest placement score.

Other special awardees included Sonae Salmon of Horizon Primary, who received the Vivian Chambers Award for the most improved student, and Danja Castle of Sydenham Primary, who received the Harold Dixon Trophy for the school’s highest placement score.

Dajue, who has earned a place at Campion College, told The Gleaner she was grateful for the recognition.

“It wasn’t challenging for me. I knew I had to work hard, and I did. This is why I am here today,” she said.

Her mother, Phillipea Dajue, said her daughter’s achievement was deeply emotional, recalling that Gabrielle’s birth came after years of prayer and waiting.

“Her birth wasn’t a regular birth because I was waiting on the Lord for years and, when it finally happened, it was like a spectacle,” she said.

Dajue said she spent considerable time teaching Gabrielle to read, while her husband, Robert Dajue, taught her about God.

“So, it was God plus education because, even if we give our kids a good education and don’t teach them anything about God, we would not have given them nothing at all. So, today I am giving God the glory,” she continued.

Phillipea said she expected Gabrielle to perform well in PEP but was still surprised when she learnt that her daughter had been placed at Campion College.

“I was expecting it. When I saw her teacher sent me the name of the school she would attend and I saw the big ‘C’, I put my glasses on to examine it more carefully because I was thinking Camperdown. But when I saw Campion College, I just ran and jumped about in the house and say, ‘God, thank you.’”

Robert Dajue said his role was to teach his daughter the love of God. He noted that Gabrielle accepted Christ at the age of six, describing it as the greatest gift a young person could receive.

Crescent All-Age principal Harris Francis said Gabrielle’s success came as no surprise.

“At the time, Gabrielle was in grade two and, when I listened to her being interviewed, I said, ‘This is a special student,’” he said.

Francis praised the Beecher Foundation, saying excellence must be rewarded.

Claude Beecher said the foundation was conceived at his late mother’s funeral.

“We are blessed and I am thankful that God is using us as conduits to bless others as He has blessed us,” he told The Gleaner.

Beecher said the foundation’s longevity was driven by the Holy Spirit and by the satisfaction of meeting former beneficiaries who remind him of the scholarships’ impact.

So far, about 1,100 students have benefited from the foundation’s scholarships, while Pauline Beecher has donated millions of dollars to thousands more.

Joel Amos, a second-year medical student and former beneficiary, expressed hope that the foundation would continue its work for many years.

“The work of the Beecher Foundation has been a blessing to a lot of people,” he said.

ruddy.mathison@gleanerjm.com