Bryan Miller, JIS Writer

Student Nurse of the Year, Alexa-Gail Woolery, is a picture of studiousness. - Contributed

It's a simple story of holding on to a dream, no matter what life throws at you. It's the story of a young lady called Lexi, who did not allow the challenges of life to ruin her.

Born on January 8, 1986, Alexa-Gail Woolery has six sisters and three brothers, and is the last of 10 children.

This 22-year-old final-year student at the Cornwall School of Nursing in Montego Bay has chalked up a major recognition - 2008/2009 Student Nurse of the Year.

Woolery readily admits that her initial tertiary years of study at the Montego Bay Community College and the University of the West Indies (UWI) were not geared towards the profession of nursing.

"I decided that this was the way to go. It is a very dynamic profession. There are many things that you can do and I have a caring heart," she said. "I have a soft spot for children so I decided that being a nurse and, later on, a paediatric nurse, would help me to self-actualise."

Woolery was born in Yallahs, St Thomas, but moved to Montego Bay at the age of six when her mother decided to relocate, with all her children, in search of better economic conditions. After attending the Corinaldi Avenue Primary School then Mount Alvernia High, where she passed seven CXC subjects, she set her sights on entering Montego Bay Community College.

proud

"The time spent at Mount Alvernia High School was very good. I participated in a lot of activities, quiz club, the choir and I was a member of the prefect body," she boasted.

"Before I entered Montego Bay Community College, I worked for one year to support myself, because my family could not support me as much and, being the last one, there were financial constraints on the family," she said as her expression pointed to some of the hardships the family faced.

After experiencing the working world, the drive to further her studies was greater than ever and Woolery embarked on her original plan. She registered at the Montego Bay Community College. There, she studied Business Management. Sociology, Caribbean Studies and Communication and on successful completion, she entered UWI.

It was while studying international relations and Spanish at the UWI that Woolery discovered her real passion - nursing.

Unwittingly, she registered with a nursing school with a long tradition of excellence, one that boasts some eight first-place winners of Student Nurse of the Year over the last 10 years.

Senior tutor in charge of the Cornwall School of Nursing, Verona Henry-Ferguson, explained that for an individual to be nominated for the Student Nurse of the Year competition, that individual must exhibit academic, attitudinal and clinical excellence. That person is usually nominated for the national competition by his or her peers.

Contestants for this competition are nominated from some five nursing training schools across the island.

81 registered students

Ferguson pointed out that there were approximately 81 registered students at the Cornwall School of Nursing.

Woolery said she was humbled by the nomination from her peers and credited her hard work and dedication to love of the task at hand.

The challenge to serve the sick drives her to work harder at being great at her profession.

"In another five or 10 years, there are basically two or three main things that I want to do. Paediatric nursing is very close to my heart, so I would love to specialise in that.

"I would also like to do nursing research because it is the backbone for nursing practice. I also want to do nursing education," she said.

Woolery identifies her relationships with God and, her mother, Isolyn Woolery, as the main motivators in her life.

"She has made the most of life. She has provided beyond her means financially, psychologically, spiritually," the nurse said of her mom. "She has impressed on me to believe in God and believe in myself. 'You can be any thing you want to be, she told me'."

This is a collaborative feature between the Jamaica Information Service and The Gleaner. Email feedback to editorial@gleanerjm.com.