Doc-to-be Monique Fenton paying it forward in honour of ‘adoptive’ mom
Published:Monday | August 19, 2024 | 12:08 AMAinsworth Morris/Staff Reporter
Monique Fenton will commence her Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) programme in a matter of days, fulfilling a dream of her ‘adoptive’ mother, Novlet Pemberton, who served as an example of kindness and love that has led the doctor-to-be on a path of caring for others.
Pemberton died just before Fenton started her secondary education at the Hampton School, but their community and church came together to support the youngster’s journey through high school.
Now, Fenton has received a bursary through the Burger King National Scholarship Programme to assist her in paying her way through university.
The student travelled from her home town of Flagaman in St Elizabeth last Thursday for the Burger King Scholarship awards ceremony, which was held at the Terra Nova All Suites Hotel in St Andrew.
When Fenton was six years old, she said her mother, Paulette Gayle, was going through depression and was unable to adequately care for her needs. Pemberton, a Good Samaritan and retiree who once worked in England and knew of the family’s situation, took the little girl into her home.
“Wanting to pursue a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree stems from having a close bond and relationship to my adopted mom,” Fenton told The Gleaner after receiving her award. “I was adopted by her at the age of six years old, and she really treated me with such care, and I’m forever grateful for her, but I had to be taking care of her medically because she was an elderly lady and just having had these experiences of taking her to the doctor and giving her the medication and just being her primary caregiver, I was able to fall in love with medicine, and I’ve been passionate about it ever since.”
“That’s the main reason why I am going into that field because she was just so kind and loving to give back to me, so I want to do that to others.”
She added: “One of her biggest dreams was to see me continue my education, and I’m fortunate to say I’ve completed Hampton School, and I’m moving on.”
After Pemberton died at 87, Fenton said her community and her Cross Roads Assembly of God Church members who knew her story, and where Pemberton was a member, rallied together to help her through high school.
“They would just help me buy things that I needed along the way for school, for food, whichever. They would always provide that for me,” she said.
When the announcement was made that she was receiving a $400,000 bursary, Fenton was elated because it was twice the amount she thought she would have got from Burger King.
“I just feel grateful, and thankful to have been given this opportunity. I know that there are a lot of persons who would have applied, and to have been considered for this award is truly an honour,” Fenton said.
The bursary came a month after she was awarded a Governor General’s Achievement Award and the Lynne Mitchell Scholarship Foundation Scholarship along with the Sylvia Gordon Scholarship Award.
Fenton was awarded the Governor General’s Achievement Award because of initiatives she has carried out through the Pedro Plains Community Development Committee for one of the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Beryl last month.
“We wanted to have a summer camp, as well as a health and social services fair and back-to-school treat, [but] due to the effects of Hurricane Beryl, we weren’t able to facilitate that this year, but we’ve been able to do that for two consecutive years, and it has been amazing and such a game changer,” Fenton said.
“I just do it because I love to give back, and the fact that I’ve been recognised for all that I’ve done, it’s just amazing,” she said.
Fenton passed her eight Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate examinations with distinctions in English language, mathematics, chemistry, biology, physics, information technology, Spanish, and principles of business.
She also passed Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations with distinction in chemistry, physics, biology, and Caribbean studies.
Fenton has been able to reunite with her biological mother and build a relationship before heading to Kingston to pursue her MBBS and become a medical doctor.