Rochell Daley, the awardee of the Joe Pereira WIGUT Scholarship for 2009–2010, relived the joy and surprise that overflowed when she was informed of her receipt of the scholarship: “I was very surprised that I got it!” Rochell’s intent has been to use the skills garnered from her Social Work degree in the Faculty of Social Sciences, her volunteerism at the Golden Age Home on Deanery Road, Kingston, and at the Jamaica Baptist Union’s head office to chart her course in a career in social work. Rochell’s positive energy bounced off her words as she outlined her goals: “I want to work with children.”

This Ardenne High and St George’s College sixth-form alumna found her niche early and credits her upbringing in one of Kingston’s lesser- valued communities for her keen sense of self and her desire to work towards positive social development. She stated very firmly, “Children need more than food in their bellies and a roof over their heads.” For Rochell, the positive socialization that is so often absent and ignored by ill-prepared parents must be brought into the mix to ensure that children are prepared for life with the right tools. “Social work is essentially about the poor, and this is what I want to do. I want to help to shape children, to re-socialize where necessary and go back to certain core values to produce young men and women of good values and strong self-esteem.” Indeed, Rochell’s programme in Social Work at the UWI put her to work with children and she signed up to work with Dr. Claudette Crawford- Brown.

Yet, Rochell also made time for some necessary fun and listed her hobbies as swimming, playing netball, listening to all genres of music, surfing the Internet and reading. Her mother and her younger sister are her bedrock, and her relationship with her father remains valuable. Rochell is surrounded by positive male energy, with Rev. Karl Johnson of the Jamaica Baptist Union continuing to be a strong mentor in her life. Rochell was inducted into UWI’s Honour Society. This is another benefit of her receipt of the Joe Pereira WIGUT Scholarship. She maintained the grade point average just under the treasured 4.0 that helped to win her the WIGUT award.

The true gift, beyond money and words, that this scholarship bestowed, was the knowledge of her potential and cementing of true confidence in her abilities. The possibilities are indeed endless for Rochell Daley, Joe Pereira WIGUT Scholarship Awardee for 2009–2010.