"I felt left out, I felt as if I would be one of those kids who would just go on the corner and do criminal activities."
These are the words of Nick Morris, a beneficiary of the GraceKennedy Education Run, as he recounted feelings of neglect and rejection because of financial difficulties that plagued him before the company came to his assistance.
Morris, who is from the Spoilers community in central Kingston, says he has been involved in the programme for the past three years. If succeeding in secondary school was difficult, starting a political science major at the University of the West Indies (UWI) was even tougher, he told The Gleaner.
Loan declined
Though his bid for Students' Loan Bureau aid failed, the assistance from GraceKennedy has taken a heavy load off his shoulders.
"In my first year at UWI, I couldn't find the funds at all to go through and GraceKennedy came to the rescue and paid the funds for me. That has just helped me to go back to school," he said with pride.
Morris is one of more than 70 students from the Learning Institute of Central Kingston (LICK) who will be benefiting from the inaugural Education Run, which is slated for this Sunday at the Kingston waterfront for a 7 a.m. start.
On Tuesday, students made a commitment to several sponsors of the event to always do their best and make them proud."Since you believe in us and are willing to support our development, we certainly pledge to do our best to fulfil our true potential," they read from the 'Charter to Succeed'.
Some students will start university in September, but Francis Madden, general manager at Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation, which runs LICK, says many who passed through the programme have moved on to successful careers.
Programme growth
Madden pointed out that when the foundation was started in 1979, there were only four high-school students in the area. Years later, the scope of the programme has grown exponentially. She charged the beneficiaries to stick to their word and do well to make the sponsors of the event proud.
"We are here to raise funds so we can move all our students forward," she said. "You have to ensure that all this run is not in vain."